Guardians
by SennaNyx
Summary: Ten years after the 01 kids saved the digital world, they are called back again for a second adventure. They are given a new way to fight using the spirits each of them received as they combat enemies who are closer to them than they may realize. Features plenty of action, a little romance, and drama. Update: Suddenly separated, the chosen struggle to find one another.
1. Chaos

A/N: Hi! This is my first digimon story in a while. It's like a cross between seasons 1 and 4 and takes place ten years after the events of season 1, and the second season never happened. I have a whole outline planned out for it :) so updates will be about weekly. Enjoy!

* * *

_Spirit of Chaos._

Such were the words presenting themselves to Matt as he lay on the cold stone floor of wherever he'd ended up. Last he'd known, he was singing onstage strumming his guitar while music blared behind him and girls screamed. Then he'd been tugged and tumbled through time and space and landed rather unceremoniously here. The silence of the dark place seemed deafening to him compared to the noise of his concert. His mind and vision frazzled and foggy, he focused on what lay before him.

A grand stone statue stood, so impressive and striking Matt still neglected to sit up. Though it had no color, the statue represented some sort of man, with a shining helmet covering his entire face. His right arm was cybernetic, made up with silver plates and complex wires and bolts. A cape swept around the figure's ankles.

Hovering at the figure's feet was an odd, bright set of armor sitting on a dark platform. Matt stared as it rotated. A silver helmet made up most of the armor, and a cybernetic arm was curled around a white and blue chest piece. Matt realized it was a miniaturized version of the statue, but there was something entrancing about the way it shone before him like a beacon.

Below the odd little armor set, a plaque read: _Justimon, Spirit of Chaos_.

The suffix to the name forced Matt's brain to clink into focus. Digimon! He must be back in the digital world. But how? Why had this place needed him again? Were the others here? Was TK?  
Where was his partner?

Even though it had been ten years since he'd last been in this world, he still knew that going anywhere without his digimon partner by his side was very dangerous. Gabumon must have been around here somewhere – he was useless to the digital world without him. Matt tore his eyes away from the statue and the odd armor set and glanced right and left, expecting to see evil monsters lurking, but he saw darkened, dusty walls that had once been beautifully adorned. He could just see filthy stained glass windows behind the statue. Peering along the darkness, Matt noticed that the room stretched into dark hallways whose end he couldn't determine. High above him, a window shone, letting in a lackluster amount of light. He guessed he was in some kind of castle.

Matt looked back at the statue, then at the bright little thing hovering at its feet. He did not recognize the digimon Justimon nor did he know why it was referred to as the Spirit of Chaos. His eyes locked on to where the thing's eyes should have been. He heard a whisper in the back of his mind and the cybernetic arm curled around the chest piece suddenly lit up and moved slightly. _Spirit_.

A sudden keen sounded from his pocket and he seized what should have been his cell phone. Instead an oddly shaped device with a screen and two buttons on the front and a larger one on the side had replaced it. The device was blue and off-white and the screen shone so brightly it was comparable to the thing floating only feet away from him. Before he could wonder what had happened to his cell phone, Matt flinched and fell backwards when a beam of light radiated from the device in his hands to the hovering set of armor at the statue's feet. The blue and white armor set shrank and zoomed to the device, disappearing within it. Darkness settled around him.

The noise stopped and a symbol appeared on the device's screen: an X with one of its sides filled in.

Matt sat frozen on the stone floor. What the hell was that? He gripped the now dim device, confusion and anger setting in. He thought he was done with this digital world stuff ten years ago, done with the worry and the danger. He'd said good-bye to his partner and he and the other chosen went their separate ways, occasionally meeting or staying in touch but no longer acting like there was a connection between them. Like they had saved the world together at one point. Most of them at college or preparing for college and he was supposed to be onstage singing for his band. But no, he'd been thrown here again as unexpectedly as the first time. The digital world was not done with him, it seemed.

He jumped again when a voice sounded behind him.

"Matt? What just happened?"

He turned quickly and saw Sora standing there, her hand resting on the stone wall as though she'd been groping through the dimness. His heart leapt, then sank when he realized he hadn't even thought of her being there as well, his girlfriend he hadn't seen for a month.

For someone who'd just been transported to another world, she appeared oddly calm about it, but such was her nature. He admired the way she made even her army uniform look great on her. The bearer of the crest of love had been drafted into the military after remaining undecided on a college major. Everyone she knew worried for her, that the army was no place for her, but she thrived in basic and had been shipped to North Korea to fight for her country. Looking at her now, she no longer looked like the indecisive girl struggling to do something worthwhile in her life. She had found her calling.

He had no idea what she was doing with him.

"Sora," he said. He quickly stood, embarrassed at being found kneeling in front of this strange statue, bewildered and frightened. He didn't know if he was referring to the fact that they were in the digital world once again or the odd light that had radiated from the device he'd found in his pocket.

She hurried toward him, worry in her gaze. He felt another pang of guilt. "Are you all right?" she said. He nodded, unable to meet her gaze. Sora was the type of person who would worry about someone even if that somone had wronged her. "We're in the digital world, aren't we?" she said. Her voice gave no hint of distress, only acceptance. As she drew near he saw her face was smeared with dirt. He wondered what she had been doing when they had been brought there.

"It looks like it."  
"You got one too?" Sora nodded to the device in his hand and pulled a similar one out of her pocket. Hers, however, was red. "Mine didn't do the light show though."

"I have no idea what that was." He pressed a button and the symbol reappeared on the screen.

There was an awkward silence between them. Matt had so much to say to her, about them, but had no idea if it was appropriate for the situation. He should have said it weeks ago, before she left. Sora's light brown eyes stared into his, and she turned away.

"We should look for the others," she said gently.

Matt sighed. She didn't want to talk about their relationship right then, and he couldn't blame her. He nodded and they set off together into the darkness.

* * *

"Joe! Joe, please wake up…"

A high-pitched, distressed voice cut its way into his consciousness. He groaned and someone shook his shoulders, calling his name again. Joe forced his eyes to open.

A young woman's face, streaked with tears, hovered over his. Her expression changed to shock and relief when he met her gaze, her large eyes going wide. Mimi turned and yelled to someone else, and Joe fought the urge to cover his ears. Her voice could be so shrill at times.

"Izzy, he's awake!" Concern jabbed his heart when he noticed her tears.

"Mimi?" He registered her distress and fear flooded his veins. "What's wrong?"

She turned back to him, her beautiful face distressed. "What's wrong!" she cried. "I was just thrown into this place with you guys and look, look at what happened to my phone!" She held up a strange-looking green device.

Joe stared at it. The last time he had seen a device like that, he'd been thirteen years old and on his way home from the greatest adventure of his life. He realized there was another among them, at Mimi's mention of his name, and he glanced to his left.

A redheaded young man sat there amongst the darkness, looking about as groggy as he felt. He too clutched a gadget similar to Mimi's, but his was a dark purple. Izzy's eyes met his and he said, "I think we're back, Joe."

"I thought so," was his response. Joe was shocked to see how sickly and pale Izzy looked. It had been, what, three weeks since he'd last seen him? They had studied together, Joe needing physics help as usual and Izzy willing to help out his old friend. He'd never been as lively as Mimi but Joe wondered if something had happened since he'd last seen the bearer of knowledge.

Mimi groaned and held her head in her dainty hands. She'd painted her fingernails pink this morning but already the polish had chipped. "No!" she said. "I don't want to be back, I want to go home – Joe, we were about to grab coffee, remember? What are we doing back here?"

"I don't know," he sighed, and he thought back to what he had been doing when he'd been suddenly transported. His heart clenched when he remembered he had just left his six-year-old niece, Emily, at her first day of school. He and Mimi had waited with her at the bus stop and she'd waved to them as the bus pulled away. He remembered her excited young face grinning at him and thought dimly of earlier that morning when she'd asked him to help her review her multiplication tables. And now her uncle, her only living relative willing to help her, was gone in a strange digital land made up of monsters.

Joe glanced at Izzy and found him examining the purple device without emotion. If he was worried about being back, he didn't show it. Digging in his pocket for his phone, Joe found instead a silver version of the gadgets. He sighed as he turned it over in his hands, pressing the buttons and looking at the screen.

Mimi sniffled. She turned her wet face to look at him, and Joe fought down a laugh at how miserable she looked. When Emily had first landed in his hands, Mimi showed up at his apartment more and more to help him care for his niece properly. He would have been lost without her help.

"It'll be okay, Mimi," he said. "We'll find the others and figure something out, all right?"

She sniffled again and nodded. It was amazing how much she trusted him. "Okay," she said with a sigh.

Not a second had passed after the three of them rose to their feet when the sound of glass breaking, wings beating, and a piercing screech made them all freeze. Moonlight shone through a newly broken, stained glass window high above them but the source of the screech was not immediately clear.

Mimi clung to his shirt and he could hear her breath coming in short, panicked gasps. He couldn't see Izzy, too focused on the broken window and the sound of wings beating growing nearer and nearer –

Joe forced Mimi to the ground as a large, humanoid shape swept past them. Mimi cried out and Joe saw huge talons brush past his head. The figure, a bird-woman with white wings for arms and talons for feet, flapped her large wings and sailed higher into the air before turning and diving toward them again, her expression wild and bloodthirsty.

He hauled Mimi to her feet and yelled at Izzy to take the nearest corridor out of there. The redhead needed no more instruction and Joe and Mimi followed him through the darkness. He prayed that the digimon, one he had never seen before, had given up her chase.

A harsh screech pierced the air behind them and Joe knew he was wrong.

* * *

"Kari?"

Kari squinted through the darkness until she saw the shape of her best friend.

She reached for his hand. "I'm here," she said.

TK took it and she felt instantly safer. Having awoken on her own in near complete darkness, she had called for him until he'd heard her while she sat in this strange dark place smelling of dust and ash. They had been at church together when, in the middle of singing along to a hymn, she'd been plunged into darkness and thrown here.

It almost made her wonder if she'd done something wrong and this was God's way of proving it to her. She had no idea. Singing in church one minute and waking up in darkness the next had made her question whether or not her deity was toying with her.

"Are we in the digital world?" TK's voice came in a hushed breath. He turned her icy blue eyes on her and her heart clenched. As of a month ago, he was both her ex-boyfriend and best friend. Their relationship was complicated and not many understood it, and sometimes Kari wondered if she fully did as well. But she trusted TK more than she even trusted her brother.

Kari immediately thought of Gatomon. "I guess so," she sighed. "What else could have happened?" With the time difference between the real and digital world, centuries must have passed since they left. Would her partner even recognize her? Did she still even exist?

A distant yell of panic broke through her thoughts and Kari glanced around, trying to pinpoint the source of the cry, but darkness and shadows were all she could see. It had been too far away and was now echoing through the cavernous darkness around them. Kari heard TK swallow.

"Was that the others?"

"I don't know," she said.

She heard him sigh, running a hand through his hair. "This is going well." She forced out a weak laugh. At least he kept his sense of humor.

TK stepped around her. She cried out when her hold on his hand was suddenly yanked downward and she released it without thinking - her adjusting eyes saw him slip away into a wide crack in the stone ground with a shocked yell. The sound of his body sliding down a steep slope faded quickly. At least he had not fallen straight down into nothingness, but they had no idea what was down there. Kari kicked herself for releasing his hand and bent over the chasm. She gripped the sharp edge of the stone floor and tried not to let panic take over.

"TK!" she cried.

Kari was shocked when there was no answer. Had he slipped too far away or had he been hurt? She slid her legs over the edge and prepared to follow him. She would find him, no matter what it took. More odd noises echoed through the darkness but she ignored them, pushing herself forward.

She yelped and started when hands clutched her shoulders.

"The hell do you think you're doing?" came a familiar voice. "Are you going down there by yourself?"

"Tai!" she said, angry that he'd scared her. He grinned, immune to the fact that they were back in the strange dimension they had visited ten years before. She pushed her anger aside and said, "TK just fell, we need to go get him!"

Her brother's eyes gazed down at the chasm. "Down there?" he said, and concern spread its way through his face. She knew he adored TK and wouldn't be surprised if he was about to leap into the chasm after him. He had always been like that, reckless and at times so careless he put himself and everyone else at risk. He was also still so protective of her he'd once broken the nose of a guy who'd been hassling her at a party.

She had no idea what he'd say once he found out she and TK had broken up.

Tai called TK's name, but again there was no response. Her heart pounded. She'd never forgive herself if she lost TK simply because she failed to hold onto his hand. But Tai was with her now, and he was the strongest person she knew. She needed his strength and courage to not only keep her steady but to get TK back.

A faint flashing caught her eye in the darkness. Her eyes followed the blinking light and noticed it seemed to be coming from her brother's pocket. She looked at his clothes and almost laughed at what he was wearing, had she not been so worried. A dirty pair of shorts and a shirt was perfect for one who'd been playing soccer all morning.

"Your phone is flashing," she said, confused. Electronics were not supposed to work in the digital world.

But what Tai dug out of his pocket was not his phone, but an orange device Kari had never seen before. Looking equally puzzled, Tai pressed one of the front two buttons.

The screen remained lit and the two of them flinched when a tinny voice began speaking.

"_Tai._"

The voice was deep and male and gravelly. Staring at Kari with suspicion in his brown eyes, Tai responded:

"Who are you? How do you know my name?"

"_The spirit calls for you._"

Brother and sister stared at each other with equal confusion and exasperation. Then Tai glanced down at the new device and back at her, a small, gloomy grin twisting his mouth. It was the reckless grin she hadn't seen in years, the smirk that had faded when their real world lives took over again. Kari realized how much the danger in the digital world had meant to her brother. He had missed it. A faint rumbling could be heard in the distance.

"Digital world, huh?" he said, looking up at her under his dark brown bangs.

Kari rolled her eyes. The careless, brave Tai was not always a Tai she wanted around. She opened her mouth to suggest they help TK when an earth-shattering crash sounded above them.

She screamed. Chunks of rubble flew in all directions and dust clouded the area. The force of the explosion or whatever it had been was so powerful the floor beneath her feet shook and she nearly fell. Distantly she was aware of the sound of metal gears turning and a huge engine running, but with the falling rubble she was more concerned with being crushed.

Tai grabbed her and pushed her forward. Sparing a glance, she saw an immensely large figure surrounded by a cloud of dust. Slanted eyes glowed from a head at least twenty-five feet above the ground. An engine spurted vast power behind it and twin cannons were mounted on its shoulders, occasionally shooting what it pleased. Her breath caught in her chest when she realized what it was. She had not seen this thing for ten years, and she had nearly died running from it.

"Tai – it's Machinedramon!" she cried.

Her brother didn't look. Instead he held her arm firm and pulled her away from the mess and the angry machine dragon digimon behind them. Kari cried out in despair when the dragon's engines propelled it over the chasm in which TK had fallen, sending rocks and debris falling as well. She called his name and prayed he was all right.

Tai led her into a narrow hallway and they rounded several corners before coming to an exhausted halt. Kari bent over, clutching a stitch in her chest before looking around. They were now in a large, mostly empty room with stained glass windows providing much better light than the area in which she had been transported. Several doorways marked the exits and she could distantly hear a strong river or waterfall. The fancy tiles and brick walls suggested that this place had once been an important temple gone to ruins.

But there was a statue in the corner of the room that caught her attention. It was of a woman wearing a mask over the top of her head and eyes, giving her pointed fox ears. Her long hair swept to her knees and her armor, adorned with yin yang symbols, covered her shoulders and chest. Her boots and gloves were both long and had the same style: thin trim at the ends and yin yang symbols on the feet and wrists.

At the figure's feet was a mask of a yellow fox's head with purple gloves curled around it sitting on a black platform. The strange thing rotated and glowed, making the room even brighter. A plaque had been mounted below the statue: _Sakuyamon, Spirit of Balance_.

Tai stared at it as well. "The hell is this?" he said, edging toward it.

"Don't, Tai," she said weakly. "We need to go back for TK." Even as she said it, she knew nothing could be done.

He gave her a look. "Are you crazy? Machinedramon's out there. We'd be killed." He grimaced and ran a hand through his hair. He had cut it at last and it wasn't as bushy as it used to be. "I can't believe he's back. We killed that guy years ago."

"Maybe he's just been reborn," said Kari. "It's been years since we've been here."

"_Tai!_"

The voice from the device in Tai's pocket sounded again, and she watched him take it out and look at it. Struck by sudden inspiration, Kari brought out what had once been her cell phone. Instead it was a device like Tai's, only hers was black. Her brow furrowed at the color.

Her brother prodded the buttons of the weird device. "Who are you? What's a spirit?"

If there was an answer, Kari did not hear it. The rumbling grew nearer and nearer and suddenly she was frozen with fear, unable to move or warn Tai of the danger. Then the world exploded in dust and debris as Machinedramon's enormous clawed feet and talons could be seen bursting through the walls. Tai was thrown to the side and quickly disappeared in the opaque mist of dirt; Kari backed further into the room, terror making her mute. Cannons fired chaotically from the cyborg-dragon's cannons, sending chunks of the ceiling falling to the tiled floor blow. The noise nearly deafened her. Over the roar of Machinedramon's engines, she heard her brother yell at her to run.

Kari knew not what else to do. She ran through the nearest doorway and was plunged into near complete darkness as soon as she rounded the first corner. She ran and ran until Machinedramon's engines could no longer be heard, and she nearly collapsed from exhaustion, holding her black device in one hand and clutching the now aching stitch in her chest with the other. She regretted wearing her nice sneakers to church – her feet were throbbing from all the running. Silently, Kari prayed for her brother and TK. She was shaking and miserable and terrified, but if anyone was going to help them now, it would be God.

She straightened up and looked at her surroundings, not that there was much to see. Kari caught the faint outline of tables and desks in the darkness. Sighing and continuing on, careful not to run into anything, she at last caught sight of a portion of light around the corner. Stepping lightly toward it, Kari glanced slowly around the sheer brick wall and saw not a window outside but a bright object similar to what she had seen at the foot of the Sakuyamon statue. This one, however, was green and black and had a bug-like vibe to it.

Kari stared at it. The thing was on its side as though perhaps Machinedramon's cannons had knocked it over. She nudged the thing with her toe. Kari jumped when it crackled with electricity and flashed several times. She bent down, wondering if it was dangerous. Things in this world often seemed to be, and though she had spent less time here than any of the other chosen, she had learned enough to know she ought to be suspicious. But it looked harmless enough.

She reached out a delicate, slight hand and touched it.

Almost immediately, the thing shrank and zoomed into the device in her hand. She started and squeaked. What was that? Was she supposed to collect these things and bring them somewhere? Shaking slightly, she looked at the gadget, which was probably her new digivice. A symbol appeared on the screen: twin jagged lines looking somewhat like a lightning bolt. The background, however, was red.

Kari sighed. She had no idea what that meant, nor if she was supposed to collect the weird thing in the first place. Standing up, she considered where to go next. If TK and Tai had been transported here, the others were probably here as well. She had to go find them, before Machinedramon did.

* * *

An uncomfortable amount of silence had passed since the last time either Matt or Sora said a word, and it was only to determine directions. His insides were squirming with awkwardness and he knew he had to say something to the girlfriend he hadn't seen in a month, but his mind failed to offer an adequate solution. Last time he had seen her, their relationship was rocky at best and they'd both said things they regretted. Matt did, at least.

The two had made it to a large room where the light relieved them from the harsh darkness of the previous hallways. The floor was tiled in a rather spectacular, winding pattern but was hidden under a layer of dust and badly cracked. A large, crescent-shaped table with eight chairs stood in the middle of the room. Matt wondered if there was something significant about the number – eight chairs, eight chosen – but he put it out of his mind.

"You didn't write me." Sora's voice cut through their silence and echoed slightly in the large room.

Matt swallowed. It was true, he hadn't written her – he hadn't written the girlfriend who'd loyally stood by him for months, who'd been fighting for her life and her country in North Korea. Guilt bound his tongue and he fought for words under her unsettlingly neutral gaze. He looked at her toned body and messy but shiny light red hair. He wondered if she understood the reason why, or if she was patiently waiting for an answer. She always seemed to have a deeper intuition about people whether they wanted it or not. He swallowed again. He didn't deserve her.

A sudden yell of panic broke out amongst the hallways. He saw Sora instinctively sink into a crouch as the yelling and screeching grew nearer. Matt could make out several pairs of legs running in panic from an almost ear-splitting shriek in pursuit. Before either of them could act, three people rounded the corner going as fast as they could manage and both he and Sora were bowled over. The five of them landed in a heap on the dusty stone floor. The screeching thing hung back in the previous hall, having apparently lost sight of them.

"Sora!" Mimi hugged her old friend tightly, and Sora grimaced but returned the hug. Matt had no idea how long it had been since Mimi had last seen her. Longer than he had, most likely.

Izzy's back was crushing Matt's foot and he sat up quickly. Joe grinned at him and fixed his askew glasses.

"Joe," said Matt, surprised. He gave his old friend a nod. "What happened?"

"We were outrunning a digimon," said Izzy, dusting off his pants. Matt couldn't remember the last time he and the redhead had run into each other. Matt fought down a sigh. It was not just his girlfriend he had been neglecting to spend time with.

"Some bird-thing chased us," said Joe. He stood, and the rest of them followed suit, though the girls were chatting happily. "I think it just lost us."

In a burst of wind and feathers, a winged bird woman swept into the room with a piercing shriek. Her white wings, tipped with gold, reached well past her taloned feet and she wore silver armor over her chest, shoulders, and head, with a red tunic underneath. Her taloned feet were large and looked as though they could inflict serious damage if they got a hold of someone. Her fluorescent blue eyes locked on Sora, and she grit her teeth, showing pointed canines. "_You!_" she shrieked.

The angry bird digimon landed before them. Matt noticed she stood at least two feet taller than a normal man. She screeched in triumph at having finally cornered her prey, and Mimi whimpered and slid back against the wall, holding her hands to her face. Matt wanted to find Sora's hand, but she was too far away, and was glaring at the digimon as though she were merely a nuisance that needed to be taken care of. With a second shriek, the digimon took flight again.

In a movement faster than a blink, the bird-woman slashed her wings together, producing an energy that hurtled toward them, dust whipping behind it.

Matt pushed Izzy to the ground and he felt Joe land not too far away, but there was a faint cry of pain behind him. Whipping around, he saw Sora kneeling behind him, clutching a bloody shoulder. Panic gripped his heart and he turned quickly, gently moving Sora's hand away from her wound. She grimaced as he examined it; the cut was not deep but bled badly. Mimi had pressed herself against the brick wall, staring at the impact the digimon's attack had made.

The digimon screeched again, angry that her attack had been almost entirely dodged. Matt grit his teeth. Sora had been hurt and they were powerless to fight back. His eyes scanned the room for anything, anything that would be of value in a fight. His gaze locked on a spindly chair with one of its legs just about broken off. If he could get his hands on that, maybe he could stab the digimon before she had a chance to hurt anyone else.

Matt leapt to his feet and ran toward it, ignoring the shouts of surprise from his friends behind him. But before he could run past the bird-woman and reach his query, a loud keen sounded from his pocket. Grabbing the now shining blue device, he only had to look at it before his world erupted in light.

* * *

Izzy could not explain what happened next. The light from Matt's blue device, probably their new digivice, engulfed the blond first in a blinding energy, making him a shining silhouette. Then blue strands of digital code, flickering pink and white, surrounded him and he disappeared beneath it. Within two seconds, a digimon burst out of the cocoon of digital code. Izzy's mind worked frantically to comprehend what had just happened. The most educated his brain could form was this: Matt had just turned into a digimon.

The blue humanoid digimon with a cybernetic arm and a billowing red cape slashed through the bird-like woman using a sword of light radiating from its arm, and it was over. She screeched only once and burst into data particles that drifted in the room for a moment, and then floated away, so someday the digimon could be reborn.

Matt – the cyborg digimon – turned toward them, his silver helmet masking his expression. Izzy spared a glance at the others. Sora and Mimi had frozen, with identical expressions of shock and surprise. Joe kept looking at him, as though hoping he could somehow make sense of what had happened to Matt. He could not. Swallowing hard, Izzy turned his attention back to the blue digimon and noticed, fear filling his veins, that he had not yet retracted the red, radiating sword from his cybernetic arm.

For a moment they all stared at one another, everyone at a loss as to what to do. Izzy looked again at Sora; the redhead had her eyes fixed on what her boyfriend had turned into and seemed to be working up the courage to say something. The tension in the new digimon's body seemed evident, and he had no idea if that was the best way to approach this situation.

At last, Sora cleared her throat. "Matt –"

And in a charge faster than lightning, the digimon leapt at them, slashing the floor between them with such force that it cracked and shattered with a terrible series of snapping sounds, and Mimi screamed. Joe said something loudly but his voice was lost as the stone floor crumbled, taking them along with it. Izzy felt a swooping sensation as it disappeared beneath his feet. He pitched to the side and fell against Sora, and for a moment all he could see alternated between blackness and the camouflage pattern on her army uniform, and catching glimpses of Matt, staring down at them, frozen once again.

Then his back hit more stone and Sora fell beside him, but her body didn't stop moving. They had landed on a slope, and Sora slid over a sharp cliff. Izzy grabbed her wrist and she hung, badly shaken and her life entirely in his power, by his hand.

Izzy grabbed a nearby metal pipe with his left hand to use as leverage to pull her up. He knew this wouldn't be easy – he reminded himself bitterly that she probably had more muscle than he did. Just as he prepared to put all of his strength into pulling Sora to safety, her face flickered, and for a moment a tinted visor covered her eyes, trimmed with gold, and white feathers adorned her head, two small white wings sweeping away from her temples.

He froze.

Sora grit her teeth and squirmed. "The hell are you looking at?" she snapped. "Pull me up!"

Izzy hastily hauled her up, thankful the odd vision was gone. Still, his heart raced as he helped her get back on solid ground. Had he just seen Sora as a digimon as well?

She sat beside him panting. He glanced at her, thinking grimly that the Sora before she'd been drafted certainly wouldn't have snapped at him like that. "Where are Mimi and Joe?" she said.

Izzy spared a moment to look at their surroundings. Other than the sheer cliff beside them, the new area was bare and dark, save for something shining a few feet away. He could hear the sound of running water. Joe and Mimi, however, were nowhere to be seen.

"I don't know."

"You don't think they fell?" She rose an bent over the edge. Izzy admired her fearlessness in returning to the cliff from which she had nearly fallen only seconds before. She paid her bleeding shoulder no attention. "Joe! Mimi!"

Her voice echoed in the darkness and no one responded. Sora looked at him, concern in her reddish-brown eyes. Izzy opened his mouth to ask if her shoulder was all right. Then a yell from above made them freeze. Light still shown from the room above them, and apparently Matt still resided in it, though it was impossible to tell what he was doing. They moved quickly away from the beam of light radiating down from the room, pausing against the wall until they could no longer hear the shouts. Izzy recognized Matt's voice.

Sora looked at him again, her brows furrowed and her face pale. "What do you think happened?" she said. Izzy fought down a sigh. He knew she wanted comfort, to know that her boyfriend would be all right, but he lacked the social skills to do it.

"I don't know," he said carefully. He hated saying that. "I think that whatever caused Matt to turn into a digimon surprised him, and he wasn't ready."

"But he attacked us…" Sora bit her lip.

"He showed restraint," said Izzy. "If he wanted us dead, he would have done so. Look at what he did to that other digimon. Instead he missed. He was fighting it."

Sora worried her lower lip. "You think so?" she said, and her expression cleared by a fraction. Then she raised her eyes to his face and studied him, and he squirmed under her scrutiny. "Are you all right, Izzy?" she said slowly. Her reddish-brown eyes had narrowed with concern. "You seem…sad. And distant."

Izzy looked away and swallowed. Sora had always had an odd, instinctive intuition about other people, and he cursed himself for being so easy to read. They had never been very close – the last time he had seen her was what, one, two years ago? Tai had made all eight of them gather at a sunny, beachside park before they went back to college. Izzy hadn't even been out of high school yet, and Kari and TK had been even younger, shyly starting to date one another. Joe's niece had not yet landed under his care and he had been chatting with Mimi, nervously trying to reignite the friendship they had once shared. Izzy remembered how he'd overheard Sora proudly gossiping to Mimi that Matt had finally asked her out, and the excitement in her voice.

He grit his teeth and forced himself to lie, though it was difficult under her sincere concern. "I'm fine. We need to find the others." He was the last thing she ought to be worrying about, anyway.

Sora nodded, recognizing that he didn't wish to talk. She looked past him, apparently searching for a way out, and Izzy saw her eyes lock on something behind him.

"What is that?" she said, rising.

He turned and followed her gaze. She had spotted the shining thing he had seen before: something blindingly bright and sitting before a statue; but they had been too far away to see it properly, and Izzy wanted a better look. Before he could examine it, it had zoomed past him, disappearing into Sora's pocket. She sighed and pulled out her new red digivice.

A symbol had appeared on her screen: a flat red tripod, the ends spiked sharply.

He swallowed, looking at the symbol and unnerved by the calmness in Sora's expression.

"The same thing happened to Matt," she said. "He got one of these too. I guess I'll be the next to turn into a digimon."

Izzy had seen a lot of weird things in the digital world, from evil rock star monkeys to electrical sockets on trees, but humans turning into digimon was a definite new one. A familiar sense of fascination and excitement rose in his chest as he wondered what his digimon form would look like.

He opened his mouth to suggest they explore the temple and find more of those shining things, but a sudden thud interrupted them. They whirled around to find Matt standing there, the gleaming sword still drawn. The new digimon raised it to his face, having apparently decided they were a threat.

Sora let out a small yell and fell backwards against Izzy, frantically pressing the buttons on her red digivice. Izzy wanted her to turn into a digimon as badly as she did but he was afraid she would break the thing or mess up the programming. He heard her squeak when, instead of turning her into a digimon, a small holographic image of Matt's new digimon form appeared above the screen. Beside it was information regarding the digimon, including its name.

"Justimon," Izzy read aloud, but they had no time to read the rest.

Matt strode toward them, sword pointed at Sora's chest. He wished he could see his face, or at least his eyes – he'd have an easier time convincing him not to kill them. With his face covered, he didn't just seem inhuman; he was like a robot. Izzy forced himself to remember that it was indeed Matt under that white and blue armor, and he tried to remind him of who he was, that he really didn't want to hurt them, but Matt gave no indication that he understood. Izzy's heart pounded against his ribs and he grabbed Sora's wrist, preparing to run, but she had pressed her red digivice to her heart, and a light erupted from it.

* * *

First chapter done! I hope it wasn't too long. So this story will feature every season 1 kid, but Izzy may get more limelight because he's my favorite xD But I promise they all have significant roles. Constructive criticism is always appreciated! Please help me improve. Next time we see: Sora, Izzy, Mimi, and Joe's spirits, and maybe Tai and TK's, and maybe the enemies are introduced xD not sure yet lol, depends on how long the chapter turns out to be. Hope you enjoyed!


	2. Thunder

A/N: Second chapter up, this one ended up even longer, sorry about that. I thought that I should clarify the levels of the spirits the chosen are getting: I know that Justimon and Sakuyamon are both megas, but as spirits, they are considered "hybrid" level, like Agunimon or Lobomon from season 4. There also will be beast spirits! So every kids' spirit has a beast spirit to go along with it, all to be revealed later. Enjoy :)

* * *

When Joe at last hit the water, the cold was so shocking his heart skipped several beats. He cursed any god that was watching him for making him fall into water when he had never in his life been able to swim. He kicked his legs and tried to make sense of where he was, but the current was so strong he tumbled through the water, opening his mouth and sucking in only icy water. He had a vice grip on Mimi's hand.

Then his head slammed against some rock and blackness seeped its way through his vision. He tried to clear his head, tried to find Mimi, but it was as though his eyes refused to open, and he felt himself drifting and toppling through the water. A distant ringing began to sound in his ears.

When he came to, he found himself sprawled on dry land, his legs floating limply in the river. He had drifted into some kind of underwater cave. His head ached and he forced himself to focus. Mimi was gone – when he'd hit his head, she had been torn from his grasp. The cold water sent pinpricks of pain seeping up his legs. He coughed violently, removing the water from his lungs, and slowly pulled himself out of the water, hoping the others were having a better time than he was.

Joe sighed as he looked down at his wet slacks and gray button-up shirt; they would take forever to dry, and he had to go back in the water to find Mimi. He swallowed when he thought of her and hoped she had drifted ashore like he had, though he hoped she hadn't hit her head as well. He forced himself to return to the water, pushing himself back into the freezing river.

Suddenly a loud keen sounded from his pocket and with shaking hands he brought out his silver digivice. It was aglow, and Joe glanced around him, wondering if it could signal if an evil digimon approached, ready to pounce. Instead he found a statue; it was a humanoid figure, its legs melded into a dolphin's tail. Sleek-looking armor covered its chest and torso, and a mask with a visor covered its head. Its arms ended in two large, armored hands, well equipped for propelling itself through water. Below the statue, a smaller, shining object sat on a platform: it was a smaller version of the statue, a blue and white set of armor sitting on its dolphin-like tail. A plaque nearby read: _Depthmon, Spirit of Water_.

Before Joe could consider what the plaque meant, the shining object flew from the statue's feet, shrinking inside his silver digivice. A trident-like symbol appeared on the screen, and the shining light from the screen died.

Joe stared at the symbol. Suddenly everything was coming into place: Matt must have found one of these as well, one of these spirits, and he had turned into the digimon it represented. And now Joe had found his. He worried his lip; he needed the digimon's prowess in swimming – he certainly had none of his own. But what if his digimon turned out to be like Matt's? He swallowed hard as he pictured instead of saving Mimi, he attacked her, throwing her frail body into the rocks. A shiver went up his spine.

Joe sighed. He could save no one sitting here, and even if he went back in the water, it was very unlikely he would could take Mimi to safety if she needed it. He decided to hope that his digimon wouldn't be as out of control as Matt's had been. His heart pounded as he imagined being a digimon, and letting go of all the frailties of being human. With a sigh, he held his silver digivice in front of him, and pressed the first button he saw, a larger one on the side.

Joe was suddenly blinded as light filled his vision, blocking out the rest of his surroundings. Panic gripped his chest and he tried to drop the digivice, but he could no longer feel it. It was as though his senses had disappeared, replaced only by this blinding light. A yell caught in his throat and he prayed it would be over soon.

Then he felt his body changing, his organs being shifted around. A weight landed on his shoulders as the armor materialized, but his new muscles supported it easily. As his legs melded together, a helmet grew from the nape of his neck and surrounded his face. Breathing had suddenly never been so easy. He inhaled, and so much oxygen filled his lungs he felt he could hold his breath for hours. Large silver armor covered his hands and arms, and twin fins grew from his forearms.

When at last the light faded, Joe looked down at his legs. A dolphin-like tail bobbed in the water instead. His vision seemed brighter, especially as he gazed into the water. His new eyes, covered by a dark visor, seemed to pick out individual lights in the water, and he could see right through it – he could see tiny plants somehow surviving in the darkness of this place, and small animals, little fish and salamanders, swam around the bottom, searching for food. He raised his hands, examining the thick armor and the sturdy fins.

Despite his slight panic, another presence seemed to have surfaced in his mind – a mind that told him there was nothing strange about what had just happened. Joe detected intelligence, and a playful air. He had a sudden urge to swim upside down through the river and perform flips and turns.

Joe forced his breathing to slow. This was really happening. He was a digimon. Was this how they were supposed to defend themselves now? Maybe they weren't meant to find their partners after all. A sinking feeling clutched his heart.

He had stayed in the cavern too long – Mimi probably needed his help. With his new, powerful arms, he threw himself into the water in a splashless dive. Almost immediately, his new body adjusted to the strong current, and he was able to move his tail and fins to perfectly propel himself through the water. He swam along the bottom, dodging rocks and tall plants. To his human eyes, he water had been murky and almost opaque, but as a digimon he could see through it easily, even picking out the individual particles floating around – every speck of dirt or organism swimming to safety. If only Gomamon could see me now, he thought with a small laugh, but he wished his little partner was there swimming beside him.

Then Joe saw first thin legs kicking to keep herself situated, then arms wrapped around a large, slippery rock. Mimi had found an anchor, but the water was freezing, and he didn't know how long she could stay there – she was in the middle of the river, and there were at least twelve feet to either shore. He kicked his tail and propelled himself toward her.

Mimi did not see him approach, so the scream he heard when he grabbed her was not unexpected. As he swam through the water, slower now without the use of his arms, she elbowed him in the face, but it probably hurt her more than it did him, given that he was wearing a metal helmet. When they reached the shore, he released her, and Mimi backed away from him, shivering but so terrified she didn't even notice.

She still had not gotten to her feet, and she sat on her butt on the riverbank, knees knocking together. "G-g-get away!" she squeaked out, the cold making her speech almost indeterminable. She kicked at him, splashing him in the face.

"Mimi – it's me!" He held his hands up in what he hoped was a peaceful gesture and not a digimon preparing to use his special attack.

But Mimi had frozen, focusing on his voice. "Joe?" she said slowly, in awe. "God – is that you?"

"Yeah," he said. He moved toward her and discovered that on dry land, he hovered a few inches above the ground. That would be handy – he figured this digimon wouldn't be as fast on land. "Weird, isn't it? I'm sorry I scared you, though."

"You're...you're not attacking me," she said. She finally seemed to realize how cold she was and pressed her arms across her chest, but it wasn't nearly enough to cease the shivering. "Like Matt."

"This guy's not like that," he said, hoping he made some sense. "He's not violent at all. I can tell."

"Uh-huh," said Mimi, standing and shivering so badly her knees still knocked. Her long light brown hair clung to her face and her long, tunic-like shirt hung limply. "I don't suppose your new digimon form can light a fire?"

Joe mentally searched his mind for attacks and abilities, but found only pressurized water attacks and knife-throwing. "Afraid not."

"I'm so cold, though… Could you...change back or something? We need to find the others."

"I don't know how," was his response. And I don't want to, he added silently – he wasn't ready to let go of the digimon's new power.

A high-pitched sound came suddenly from Mimi's pocket and she brought out her green digivice curiously, her eyes wide. Behind her, a shining object, looking like the armor of a yellow fox-woman with purple gloves and boots, rose out of a pile of rocks behind them, and she jumped.

"Looks like that's yours," Joe said, grinning underneath his helmet.

A sudden war cry broke the silence.

* * *

Tai's lungs were burning. The roar of Machinedramon's engines followed him through the hallways as he ran. It seemed he could not escape the noise, echoing off of the stone corridors, making it impossible to tell where the digimon was. His footsteps rapped quickly on the floor of the temple and he rounded a corner, slipping down the winding ramp. He wasn't sure if descending in this place was the best solution to escaping Machinedramon, but he couldn't wind back and find another way to go. He prayed Kari had gotten away safely. At least the digimon had chosen to follow him instead of his sister.

He froze when the corridor came to an abrupt stop, forking in two directions. Panting, he could hear the distant rumbling and explosions of the robotic dragon doing its best to track him down. The orange device in Tai's pocket sprang to life.

"Take a right," the male voice ordered.

Tai clutched the digivice and held it to his face, his expression contorted with fatigue and suspicion. "Why the hell should I listen to you?" he rasped.

"You will be dead if you don't move. I can lead you to the spirit."

Spirit. There was that word again. He wanted to know what it meant, what it had to do with him, but the ground shook beneath his feet and something roared above him. Gritting his teeth, he took off again down the right hallway. He could feel his heart hammering against his ribs as he ran, and the guide in his digivice continued to give him directions in a cool, almost bored voice. Tai's anger grew as he sprinted. He hated taking orders from someone he had never met and knew nothing about. As soon as he was out of danger, he was going to demand answers.

But after descending down a flight of stairs, Tai's anger was swept away at the shining sight before him. The room, otherwise lightless, was illuminated by a set of armor resting on a floating hexagonal stand. Tai scanned the odd thing, immersed in the light shining from it and the way it seemed to speak to him. He took in red armor trimmed with gold and a bright yellow mane of hair trailing behind it. Three horns encased the red, empty faceguard.

His digivice, held limply in his hand, flashed once more and the voice arose, echoing faintly in the stone room. "This is the Spirit of Fire, Tai. Agunimon of the Warrior Ten."

"What do I do with it?" he asked softly.

"It will soon be under your command, allowing you to become Agunimon."

Tai gazed into the armor's empty faceguard. Flames and smoke wafted around it. "I can become a digimon?" he said. He couldn't believe it. He remembered, as a young boy, looking at his partner and wondering what it was like to harness the new strength of every evolution. Was he finally going to get his chance?

He jumped when the armor suddenly zoomed toward him and disappeared within his digivice. He brought his digivice up to his face and noted the symbol of the screen: an upside down, double pronged line with two lines on either side of its end. A sudden, determined recklessness filled his heart, as though the flames themselves had engulfed his veins.

"Yes. Using this spirit, you can absorb the data of any digimon you destroy. No other spirit will match the power this one contains."

Tai clutched his digivice. Every other question, about the voice speaking to him, the spirit he'd just received, his friends, all dissipated with the arrival of this new spirit. Excitement and purpose overwhelmed him instead. No longer would he sit on the sidelines while his partner did his fighting for him – he would finally have the chance to prove his own strength. He allowed the light to encase him, the flames to swallow up his form and turn him into a digimon.

* * *

"Sora! Izzy!"

Izzy almost did not hear Kari call – he was too focused on the transformation taking place before his eyes. He backed away as the blinding light surrounded Sora, then turned into the same blue digital code that had engulfed Matt when he turned into a digimon earlier. Justimon took a step away from her as well, raising his sword to his face again, his attention completely on Sora. Her transformation had completed. Kari came to a stop by his side and she gasped, her gaze fixed on what Sora had just turned into.

Out of breath and panting, Kari stared at Sora with wide eyes, and Izzy reminded himself she had not yet seen anybody become a digimon yet. "What – what happened to her?" she stammered. "And who's that?"

"That's Matt," he said, but offered nothing else. His attention was focused on the new digimon, Sora.

She stood taller than Sora had and was humanoid, but two great white wings, tipped with red, waved in the slight breeze, and she curled them against her back. Her entire body was covered in a white cloth, except her face, and her eyes were concealed by a visor with gold trim – the same visor he had seen in that weird vision. Her head, the same as before, was covered in white feathers, and small white wings swept past her temples. She was dressed like a warrior; armor covered her chest and forearms, and a blue half-skirt draped around her waist. The tripod symbol was adorned in the folds of the skirt. A black crossbow was tied to her back and a sword was sheathed at her left hip. Her footwear was fantastic, silver high heels tipped with gold. The silver wound its way up her knees, and two small, silver wings adorned each ankle. She raised her golden shield, attached to her left arm, in defense.

Izzy aimed his purple digivice at her and pressed a button; a small hologram with Sora's new form appeared, giving the name: _Valkyrimon_. Matt did not appear to be intimidated by Sora's transformation. He instead exchanged his gleaming red sword for a silver fist sparking and sputtering with energy, and aimed it at Sora's face. She unsheathed her sword, and even in the dim light it gleamed silver. Izzy was impressed; was she really going to fight her boyfriend?

Sora raised her sword. "Matt, you are out of control. I'm not going to let you harm my friends." Her voice had an air of solid confidence and she stood fearlessly before him, even after he'd made them fall through a floor only moments ago. It was no wonder she did so well in the army.

An orb of lightning shot at Sora and she ducked, and then sprang at Matt, propelling herself with her powerful wings. Kari gasped next to Izzy as the two digimon fought; a loud _clang_ sounded every time Matt blocked Sora's sword with his cybernetic arm. Izzy wondered what her plan was – she couldn't hope to defeat him, after all he was still Matt, but with her new digimon form he wouldn't be surprised if she accidentally used too much power.

Kari had been watching the fight silently, her light brown eyes huge. Compared to some of the others, Izzy had seen her fairly recently: they attended the same community college and Kari would often ask him for help with her pre-calculus homework, jokingly remarking that it was the only reason the two of them might hang out. "What is going on?" she said at last. "Why is everyone turning into digimon?"

"I'm…not really sure," was his honest response. "Sora and Matt had found these glowing things and they used their digivices to transform."

"Glowing things?" Kari echoed. A sudden strong wind blew past them as Sora used one of her abilities to subdue Matt.

She brought out her digivice, and Izzy frowned at the dark color. Thus far, all of their digivices had matched their crest color: Izzy's had been purple, and Kari's pink. Before he had much time to dwell on the subject, a lightning bolt-like symbol appeared on her screen, but the background was red. "I found one, I think," she began to say, but suddenly her digivice glowed.

A beam of light radiated from the tip of her digivice. It shot to Izzy's hand, which held his own digivice, and Izzy caught a glimpse of huge red bug eyes and a pair of green antennae before it disappeared within his digivice. The same symbol appeared on the screen, but this time the background was not red. "I guess it was yours," said Kari softly.

Izzy spared a glance at the battle. Matt had pinned Sora to the dusty brick wall and was bringing his sword threatening close to her face. She kicked him, her gold pointed toe connecting with his shin, but it only seemed to anger him and he applied more force, forcing Sora to grit her teeth and hold off his arm with all her strength. The tip of the sword grazed one of the smaller wings on her head, and tiny, broken feathers fell to the floor.

Clutching his digivice tighter, a thrill of excitement passed through Izzy's chest at this new experience, at a chance to learn about something he had always wondered – what it was like to be a digimon. "I'm going to help her," he told Kari.

She paled as she watched the two digimon continue to struggle. "Be careful," was her quiet response.

He'd seen Sora's nimble fingers press the button on the side of the digivice before she had been engulfed in light. He promptly did the same.

The last thing Izzy thought before his world was covered in white was his natural curiosity hypothesizing what this would be like, what to expect. Nothing prepared him for the sudden growth spurt and the feeling of black and green armor covering his body. He fought down the panic – after all, this was probably temporary – but to feel your own body become something else in a matter of seconds was unnerving, even for him. He closed his eyes and let the changes commence, feeling his fingers extend and harden, a pair of bee-like wings sprout from his shoulders, and green armor, pointed at the chin, cover his face.

When the light disappeared, Izzy aimed his fist at Justimon and electricity shot from his silver claws, knocking the blue and white digimon aside. Matt sprawled haphazardly for a moment as Sora sank to her knees, exhausted, but he leapt up again, charging at Izzy.

Izzy, however, saw Matt move in slow motion. His new eyes made his opponent's moves very predictable. Matt swiped at his head; Izzy ducked and kicked him in the gut, knocking him back again. His new body was surprisingly flexible, and Izzy detected that this digimon was well-versed in close-combat as well as some ranged abilities. He sensed a second mind, next to his own, that was cunning and brave, but the electricity he had used earlier was oddly unnatural, as though he wasn't supposed to have it. He wondered for a moment what that might mean.

Matt knelt a few feet away, clutching his stomach. Sora walked over to him, sheathing her sword and her expression blank. Her heels echoed slightly against the stone floor. Underneath her dark visor, Izzy caught a glimpse of reddish-brown eyes, the exact same color as Sora's. "Thanks," she said to Izzy.

"No problem." He was a little proud that he had saved someone, twice within a half an hour, without using just his brain for once.

Their attention became fixed on Matt when he groaned, and a sound of almost pain escaped him. "S-s-sora," he said, so softly they almost didn't hear, "get away, I'm going to attack -"

He didn't have time to finish his sentence. With a roar of fury, the caped digimon swiped at Sora with his sword, and she leapt back just in time. She waved her hand, and a great gust of wind blew at Matt. He tumbled toward the brick wall but landed on his feet against it, pushing off and leaping at Izzy. His new body reacted instinctively, knocking aside Matt's sword with a huge, clawed hand. Matt landed and kicked; Izzy caught his foot and threw it aside.

Izzy felt a thunder ability begin to work its way into his claws, but Matt had frozen. He hesitated too, and he could feel the tips of his claws sparking and flashing.

Matt jerked his head toward him. "N-now," he stammered. Izzy hesitated. "Strike now -"

He released the electricity built up in his claws, and Matt's form lit up and jerked away from him. Ice filled Izzy's veins; had he used too much power? He hadn't wanted to fight his old friend in the first place – he'd only been trying to help Sora but he might have seriously injured Matt in the process. Izzy imagined Sora's furious expression as she faced the person who had just accidentally killed her boyfriend. Maybe he wasn't ready to be a digimon after all…

But the cyborg digimon only fell to the ground, and digital code surrounded him. When it faded, Matt knelt in his place, looking tired and a little shocked. Izzy couldn't blame him. Underneath his mask of green armor, Izzy opened his mouth to apologize for shocking him so badly, but Matt spoke first.

He turned his blond head and gave Izzy a small, grim grin. "Sorry I attacked you." His voice was strained and quiet.

"Are you all right?" Sora gave a great flap of her wings and drifted over to them, concern in her voice. She sounded more like her old self to Izzy. Kari hesitantly joined them, having decided it was safe.

"Yeah…" Matt rose slowly, and Izzy cringed inwardly at the wince of pain. "The more I fought you, the weaker I got, and I got more control after a while…it was weird, it was like I couldn't stay a digimon because I didn't have the strength." He spoke as though what had just happened was totally normal. Izzy realized that the old Matt, the one he had spent months with ten years ago in the digital world, would have been upset at something so unnatural happening, but now he was taking things like this in stride.

Sora absently fingered the hilt of her sword. "I guess that's something we'll have to keep in mind," she said, turning toward him. At this distance, Izzy could no longer see her eyes.

Izzy gave a small nod. "I wonder how long it takes us to lose the energy, or if it varies depending on what digimon we turn into."

Sora smiled. "We'll find out." She looked over at Kari. The younger brunette had been silent, staring at the stone floor, one of her hands holding her upper arm. Izzy couldn't understand what the gesture meant – had she somehow hurt herself? "Are you all right, Kari?"

The eighteen-year-old jerked her head up and looked at her. "Y-yes…sorry. It's just…odd." She looked hesitantly at Matt, and Izzy thought saw a hint of fear in her eyes. "I mean…we turn into digimon now? Where are our partners?"

Sora's wings drooped slightly. "I don't know. Maybe we can find them at some point."

"And…" Kari glanced again at Matt. He was watching her closely. "Do you think you should even use your digimon thing, if it's so difficult to control? What if…what if you attack us again?"

He looked at her, the smile fading from his face. Kari had a point; what would be the point of Matt having this powerful spirit if he could not control it? If he got too out of hand he could seriously injure one of them someday. Matt opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by footsteps from the nearest corridor.

* * *

The symbol on Mimi's new green digivice looked like a yin yang symbol, but there was no time to worry about it. A digimon had appeared, at first leaping for Mimi but had decided to focus on Joe after he retaliated with a burst of water from his wide hands, saving her. Again. The attacking digimon had blue skin and wide, dinosaur-like feet. He wore ragged pants and some armor on his chest, and odd wooden gloves that clutched large, well-worn clubs. Mimi had fallen again and was huddled on the ground, trying to both keep warm and stay out of the way.

Mimi was impressed with Joe; not only had he turned into this weird new digimon, he was fighting, like their partners had so long ago to protect them. She knew that Joe had never thrown a punch in his life, let alone fight someone with the intent to kill. It was both impressive and frightening. What had become of them? What happened to the days where the children ran from danger and their partners did their best to protect them? Mimi hated this. She had never liked violence and just wished everyone could somehow find a way to get along.

Unfortunately, this was not always possible.

Joe swept his arms forward and threw dual knives at the unknown digimon. With impressive speed, they were ducked and dodged, and the weird blue humanoid digimon leapt at him swiped with both clubs. Joe was hit, but in the chest armor; he was thrown backwards, landing on the ground. His tail lay limply on the dusty stone as he pushed himself back up.

Oh, God. Mimi pressed her hands to her face. Joe was fighting to protect her and he was getting hurt. She didn't want him to fight in the first place! She opened her mouth to yell at him to run, but that was a stupid solution. She'd just slow him down, and the digimon was too fast anyway. She prayed that someone else would come along and solve this for her.

Mimi started when Joe called her name. The digimon had leapt at him again, brandishing both clubs, and Joe had caught them in his large hands meant for swimming. They struggled, the other digimon using all his strength against Joe, and he was shaking as he held the clubs away from his face. "Mimi," he said without turning his helmeted head, "you need to use that spirit you found!'

Cold terror swept its way around Mimi's heart. She gripped her green digivice, looking again at the symbol. "But -" she began to say, but the realization of what her words would mean made her stop talking. Joe was in trouble and she was too scared to help him.

But did she have to become a digimon? It was too freaky. What if she couldn't control it? What if she could never change back? So many insecurities prodded her. She trembled, clutching her digivice with both hands.

The digimon, apparently experienced in martial arts, struck quickly with one of his legs, a high kick that caught Joe in the shoulder. He jerked back, sideways, and the unknown digimon raised both his clubs. Joe turned and shot a torrent of water from his right hand. Joe had saved himself, but for how long?

Mimi jumped when a hologram appeared above her digivice. It showed the unknown digimon, giving him a name and information about his type and attacks. Yasyamon, she read. She started again when the roar of water sounded and suddenly mist sprayed her; a whirlpool had spun its way right out of the nearby river and enveloped the Yasyamon. Mimi stared in awe. Joe's digimon form was unbelievably powerful; he probably didn't need her help after all. She wouldn't have to turn into a digimon...

Mimi backed away from the mist spraying her; she was already wet from the river, but she didn't want to become any colder than she already was. She spotted Joe standing beside the whirlpool that had trapped Yasyamon; the blue visor covering his eyes was aglow as he controlled the water. With any luck, the digimon would drown soon and the fight would be over.

With a sudden slash from within, the whirlpool disappeared, and Yasyamon remained, wet but holding his clubs in a pose that signified a completed swing. With sudden, immense speed, he shot at Joe and swiped both clubs forward. Joe was struck and flung back against the rocky surface. He weakly raised his head, shaking.

A cry died in her throat and she clutched the digivice tighter. Now Joe had gotten hurt because she'd been too scared to become a digimon as well. Guilt gnawed at her and she began pressing buttons, frantically trying to find the one that would turn her into the digital monster she was supposed to be. A brilliant light flashed from her digivice and she froze. Digital code surrounded her and she closed her eyes, forced herself to calm down. This was supposed to happen. Matt had gone through this. So had Joe. Everything would be okay...

Though the sudden growth spurt forced her to fight down panic again, the feeling of her armor sliding on felt natural. As her feet and hands slid into boots and gloves, she was reminded of simply putting on clothes. She laughed at herself as armor covered her chest. She hoped her digimon's outfit would at least match well.

She felt a staff in her hand and long hair against her ankles. When the digital code disappeared, the sudden new senses overwhelmed her. Her eyesight had always been fine, but now her new eyes cut through the dimness of the cavern with ease. It was as though someone had flipped on a light switch or it had never been dark in the first place. The word nocturnal from high school biology slipped through her mind. The little yellow armor-thing her digivice had absorbed had represented a fox; were foxes nocturnal? She couldn't remember.

But then a new sense emerged in her mind. It was not a sense that could be defined through eyes or ears, however. She withdrew herself from reality and explored the new sense found in her mind. She peered through the strange darkness and saw several shining lights. She focused on one; it was blue, and within the light a shining symbol could just barely be seen. It looked like a circle with curled points on two opposite sides. Mimi mentally advanced toward the symbol and was overwhelmed by the emotions she found within it: seething hatred mixed with terrible fear and guilt. She inwardly shook her head. Whoever this person was, he was experiencing awful emotional turmoil.

Withdrawing from the blue light, she focused on the other shining lights, and picked another one randomly. This one was purple, and the symbol found within represented two circles, one larger and one smaller, joined with two lines. She drew nearer and found calmness, but a hidden excitement brought on by a new discovery. She sensed that this person was experiencing something he'd always wanted to know about.

She picked another light. This one was shining silver, and she found a cross-like symbol embedded in the light. She focused on the emotions within this light and discovered hidden worry but a powerful will. There was a fierce sense of protectiveness and concern for seven other people. There was something else, hidden away from her, and she attempted to pry into it. But the light reacted and she was forced away from it. She was withdrawn from her inner world and thrown back into reality.

Yasyamon had his clubs drawn and was crouched into a combat pose. Mimi's keen new eyes watched his slanted eyes lock on Joe's incapacitated form.

Mimi felt her legs spring into action. Before she knew what had happened, she stood in front of Joe with her staff held in front of her. A transparent, pink and white shield extended from the tip of it, covering the two of them completely. Its edges sank into the ground, making her shield airtight. Yasyamon, stuck in mid-leap, bounced unceremoniously off of it, landing on his back on the stone ground.

"Mimi..." Joe said slowly, watching her. He gingerly pried himself away from the wall.

But Mimi's eyes were closed and she whispered an incantation known only to the digimon she had become. Twin dragons made of purple, smoky material erupted out of the sides of her staff. Under her command, the two smoky dragons propelled themselves through her shield at the Yasyamon. In her inner world, she suddenly detected one of her lights drawing nearer and nearer...

Before her dragons could reach the injured digimon, a sudden fire surrounded the Yasyamon, shot from somewhere beyond Mimi's line of sight. He only had time to let out a sharp yell before another humanoid figure jumped him, throwing punches aimed at his face. Her dragons swept past the two and dissipated some distance away. Mimi froze, her staff held at her side. She had never seen such senseless violence before. Her attack would have offered the digimon a quick death and this unknown digimon was prolonging his death. She could not see Joe, but judging by the gasp of surprise she heard behind her, he felt the same. She took a closer look at this new humanoid digimon and saw long, messy, bright yellow hair and black and red armor.

A final, brutal punch was thrown and Mimi heard a muffled crack. Then the Yasyamon disappeared, dissolving into millions of data particles that flowed into the fire digimon, apparently absorbing them. The new digimon stood and turned toward them, his expression wild. Mimi focused on the small white horns on the armor on his face and the symbol on his belt. The orange light in her mind, sporting a sun-like symbol within it, glowed with the rush of blood thirst and violence.

Then the digimon opened his mouth and spoke, his grin wide. Mimi could see pointed canines. "Are you guys friends of mine?" he said.

Mimi recognized his voice instantly. "Tai!" she exclaimed. She took a step forward, her fists clenched. How could he have done that to that digimon? "Why did you –"

"It's good to see you, Tai," Joe interrupted, floating forward. His armor was dusty and Mimi could see dents in the back, but he seemed fine. "We were worried." He shot a look at Mimi, and though she could not see his face, she knew what it meant. At the same time, she sensed a warning coming from the silver light within her mind. She shook her head to clear it. What did those lights and symbols mean?

"You guys too," was his response. He seemed to have calmed some, but Mimi still detected a thirst for bloodshed. She shivered inwardly. What kind of digimon had Tai become? "You haven't seen the others?"

"They are near," said Mimi. The two guys looked at her and she sighed, having no way to reasonably explain what her new digimon form could sense. "I can just tell."

"Well…all right." Tai turned, the points on his shoulder armor following the movement. "Nice forms, by the way, you guys. We're going to kick some serious ass when the time comes."

Mimi offered a weak smile and Joe gave a noncommittal sound of agreement. She then gestured to the area in which she was sure they would find most of the others. It led up an uphill corridor that wound around into a spiral. As Tai led the way, Mimi had no problem navigating with her new eyesight, but Joe was not as lucky, apparently only adept at seeing through murky water. She held his wide hand and guided him the rest of the way and sensed a surge of surprise from the silver light.

It wasn't until they had reached a wide, clear room when most of the lights in her head glowed. Tai jumped back in shock and four other figures appeared suddenly before them, looming into view from the darkness. She recognized Matt, kneeling on the floor and apparently resting, his blond hair tousled, and Kari, looking small and scared, wide-eyed and her arms crossed against her chest. Mimi's attention was fixed on the two digimon who stood in front of them like guards. Both were humanoid, but one represented a green and black insect and the other a beautiful warrior woman with weapons and wings. Mimi admired her outfit and was reminded of Greek goddesses.

For a moment, they all stared at one another. Mimi opened her mouth at the sight of Matt and Kari but she sensed hostility from the purple and red lights in her mind, and hesitated. Tai broke the silence, his exclamation brimmed with happiness. "Kari!"

The younger girl's eyes widened, and she stared at the human-like fire digimon. "Tai? Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me. Weird, huh?" He grinned, showing off his pointed teeth again. Smoke wafted into the air from the vents on his wrists. The two digimon, who Mimi had already begun to guess who they were, relaxed. "I'm sorry I had to leave you back there."

The female digimon with the bird-like wings studied Mimi and Joe. Her gaze was gentle but Mimi noticed she kept a hand on her golden-hilted sword. "I'm so glad you two are all right," she said. "We were worried after we fell and we couldn't find you."

"We got attacked, but we're okay now," Mimi said. She shuddered, thinking of the freezing water and the Yasyamon Tai had violently destroyed. Nothing good ever happened to them when they were separated.

"Matt," said Joe, "you're not a digimon anymore." Mimi felt a rush of relief when she realized this as well. She was still a little worried she'd be stuck as a digimon.

"Yeah...These guys had to help me." He gestured to the two digimon.

Sora gave a nod and a grin. "We had to fight him. Izzy ended the fight, though."

Mimi looked at the insectoid digimon. She sensed embarrassment from the purple light. "Well...he attacked us first."

Even with his armor covering half his face, it was easy to see Tai's incredulous expression. "What? Did you really?"

As Matt scowled, Sora said quickly, in that gentle way of hers, "But he saved me from an attacking digimon, so it worked out." She tipped her feathery white head at Joe. "And…Joe. You're floating."

Joe looked sheepishly down at his tail hovering a foot above the stone ground. "Yeah…my digimon isn't the best on land so this is the best I was given."

"You look like you can swim amazingly, though."

Tai grinned at them, crossing his arms across his chest. With his adorned, red and gold gauntlets and his layered red and white chest armor, he looked rather imposing to Mimi. The designs on the trim of his gauntlets reminded her of ancient China. "Don't we look awesome?" he said, and Mimi resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She knew she wasn't the most mature of the bunch, but even she knew when Tai was acting like a child.

"We look scary," said Mimi. She looked at Izzy's new giant black bug eyes and Sora's sheathed sword.

"And dangerous," added Matt. "I almost killed most of you guys when I did it."

The wide mouth on the digimon Tai had become sagged. He dropped his arms. "Oh come on, this is amazing! Izzy, what do you think? Why aren't you coming up with theories left and right?"

Mimi turned her attention to the insectoid digimon. She admired the straight, long wasp-like wings and the litheness of his body and armor. He was probably very swift in combat. Lightning bolt-like symbols were engraved in his large, black, armored hands. She noticed, with an inward chuckle, that his bright red hair almost matched the short locks he wore as a human. "We don't know why we were given these powers, and what we have to use them for," he said in that toneless way of his. "Yes, we look powerful, but what kind of enemy can we expect to face if we were given this kind of power? Is it now someone so strong our partners have become obsolete?"

The atmosphere became heavier as the truth in Izzy's words weighed on them. Mimi clutched her staff. She hadn't thought of that; of course there had to be a new enemy powerful enough for the digital world to require the help of the eight chosen again. Tai scowled at him.

Kari nodded in agreement. "We need to figure out what is going on here, and why we're all turning into digimon." Mimi wondered vaguely where her digimon form was hiding.

"We also need to find TK," said Matt. "He's still missing."

Kari bit her lip and glanced at him. "I was with him earlier," she said, her expression pained. "We got separated, though." Mimi sensed guilt, then terror from the pink light in her inner world as Kari recalled the memory. She saw a hand slipping away into a dark chasm...

Sora patted Kari gently on the shoulder. In her digimon form she was now so tall she had to stoop to reach her. "We'll find him, Kari. I'm sure he's okay." The younger girl sighed and bowed her head. Then her eyes widened she looked up at her brother.

"Did you tell them about Machinedramon?"

Matt jerked his head to look at the two of them, and Sora's hand reached for her sword again. "Oh – no I haven't yet," said Tai, somewhat sheepishly.

Joe floated forward a step. "Where did you see Machinedramon?" he asked.

Kari opened her mouth to answer, but she froze when twin blades, both red as blood and followed by an eerie whistle, came hurtling toward her from nowhere.

* * *

A/N: I don't think the name of Izzy's spirit was ever mentioned, so I hope you guys were able to figure out what digimon it was from my crappy descriptions xD Also, I hope the part with Mimi's spirit was not too confusing (the "inner world" part) - it will be explained in a chapter or two.

Next time: enemies are introduced, stuff goes down, and (I think) someone explains to the chosen what the heck is going on. As always, constructive criticism is appreciated :) Thanks for reading!


	3. Hope

Tai yelled something. Sora acted.

She shoved Kari aside, raised her shield and deflected the blades. They bounced off her golden shield with such power she was pushed a step back. As they fell harmlessly to the ground, she noticed they looked like sharpened boomerangs. A closer look told her they were curved, blood red feathers.

Sora narrowed her eyes at the weapons and opened her mouth, but a gasp behind her interrupted. Izzy knelt on the ground, his large, black hand holding his head. He was shaking badly and his wings drooped. Sora moved to his side, but Matt beat her there. He placed a hand on Izzy's spiked black shoulder and shook him gently.

"Izzy? Are you all right?"

Izzy continued to tremble, unresponsive.

"What's wrong with him? Who shot at us?" Joe had drawn his knives and water dripped from his hands.

Tai grit his teeth. "Mimi – we need a shield," he said grimly. "We're under att –"

But then he froze, and pure terror swept its way through his expression, clouding his brown eyes. Sora had never seen him look so scared in her life, even during the worst days in the digital world. Tai had the crest of Courage, there was no way he felt like that… Sora glanced from Izzy's shaking form to Tai's frozen expression, and she drew her sword. Someone was messing with them.

Then a haze filled her vision and she glanced frantically at the faces around her, the darkness of the temple, and the object in her hands. _What am I doing here? Who are these people?_ She looked down at her hands, white and armored. _Why am I a digimon?_ Cloudiness muddled her brain and she stared at the group, fear seeping into her veins like ice. _Why are they digimon? Am I back in the digital world?_

She shook her head. Memories returned slowly, and she blinked at the others staring back at her, wearing matching expressions of confusion and concern. A blond young man made his way toward her and she focused on him, trying to remember his name. "Sora?" he said slowly. She knew his name. M…Ma…

Sora was suddenly tackled from behind. She landed on the dusty floor with someone on her back. A rage-filled shriek sent her ears ringing and she stood, grabbed whatever was on her back by the shoulders, and flung it over her head. The feathery, humanoid shape that was hurled to the ground surprised her, but the digimon leapt to its feet and advanced on her, eyes mad.

The digimon was apparently female, and covered head to toe in black feathers tipped with red. Only her face was bare, and it too had red markings. Her face was pretty and her eyes a reddish-brown, but her expression was twisted and wild. Sora's heart clenched in sympathy for this digimon. She had clearly lost her mind a long time ago. Her wings were huge, black and beautiful, and the longest feathers were blood red. Her arms ended in three curved claws, and she wore pointed heels. She wore little armor, but it was red as well and wrapped around her chest and pelvis almost like two shawls.

She was no digimon Sora had ever seen before. She even looked a bit familiar…

As Sora's memories returned to her, shouts and cries arose in the darkness around her. Other enemies had approached and were attacking her friends – she forced aside her spirit's fierce instincts and looked to them. Tai and Izzy both seemed to have recovered from the weird affliction that had incapacitated them. Tai wrestled with a humanoid digimon in red and orange armor, wearing a spiked helmet. Fire and smoke from their attacks wafted and blazed, disappearing when it failed to ignite and spread on the barren floor. Izzy and Joe fought side by side against an angel-like digimon in black armor with gold tints. He had four demonic-looking wings and a mask covered most of his face. Blond hair fell into his eyes. A red-haired, female digimon with dragonfly-like wings and purple armor leapt on Joe, throwing him to the ground. Izzy advanced on her, electricity crackling from his silver claws. Sora couldn't get a good look at these digimon in their current situation, but she recognized none of them. They didn't look like anything the eight of them had ever seen before.

Other digimon had shown up to fight as well; a four-footed, red-feathered digimon with steel covering its head and wings fought with Mimi, who tried her best to ward off both its attacks and the attacks of a beautiful, angelic female digimon with a red scarf and four golden wings. Matt and Kari huddled in the middle. Matt clutched his digivice as though preparing to use it, and Sora prayed he wouldn't – they didn't need another foe to fight. Sora peered through the darkness and the chaos surrounding her and saw other digimon closing in as well.

Fear bled through her as she realized what they were facing: an army. How were they going to survive this? They had just gotten these spirits and were horribly inexperienced with them. They had to run. But how would they get Matt and Kari out of there too?  
Sora's head snapped around to look at the digimon who had attacked her at the sound of an awful snarl. "Give me your spirit," she said, her voice distorted with rage. Her claws were raised a bit like a cat's, her wings held stiffly behind her.

"Who are you?" said Sora quietly. She realized suddenly that her dropped sword had returned to its sheath. Water from Joe's attacks flowed down the slight decline, trickling past her heels. Around her, cries of battle, of fear. She was suddenly back in North Korea, fighting. Sora prayed for her friends' safety.

The unknown digimon grit her teeth and launched again at Sora. She waved her arms and felt her wind attack begin to form but the black-feathered digimon was too quick. She tackled Sora. Her back hit the stone floor hard, and her wings did nothing to cushion the fall. Sora caught sight of a wild expression and claws scrabbling at her armor. This digimon was out of her mind. Sora wrestled her away and drew her sword. She didn't have a problem killing someone who threatened her friends.

Her opponent landed agilely on her feet and grabbed a pair of dark, red-tipped feathers from her wings.

"_Seven Heavens!_"

A white blast blinded Sora and she turned away, hiding her face with a white hand. When she looked back at the avian digimon, she lay on the ground, her expression enraged and her back smoking. Behind her stood an angel digimon, completely encased in silver and blue armor. His eight wings were golden and curved, and held majestically around his frame. A blue helmet masked his face with a star-like shape on the front, and two small angle-like wings swept up at the temples. His grand silver armor reminded Sora of a knight of high standing, with its blue shoulder armor, golden symbols scattered across it, and golden plackart.

Sora gave a nod to the new digimon. "Nice shot, TK," she said. To her right, a flash of electricity from Izzy.

Her boyfriend's brother raised his head, and his familiar, kind voice sounded from his helmet, distorted but not muffled. "No problem," he said. Sora saw Kari's expression of relief at the sight of him.

The avian digimon, still so focused on Sora, rose and sneered at her again, her claws clenched at her sides. "You cannot escape from me, Love," she said. "I will have your spirit!"

"Relax, Odissmon," came a laughing, flirtatious voice. Sora looked to the red-haired digimon Izzy and Joe had been fighting earlier. She hovered in the air, her dragonfly-like wings buzzing around her. Odissmon's lips rose in a snarl at the comment. "Their spirits will be ours today."

"Indeed. They shan't own them long." The dark angel digimon with the blond hair spoke this time. He looked to the red-haired woman and said in a cultured, smooth voice, "Shall we destroy them now, Inanimon, my dear?"

"About time," she said. She looked back at the blond digimon with a twisted grin. "These humans have been nuisances for far too long." Behind her, various insectoid and avian digimon lined up, their vicious eyes fixed on the eight of them.

The red and orange-armored digimon fighting Tai threw him aside. Fire dissipated from his hands and he looked at Tai's fallen form. "Then kill them and take your spirits. We'll bring the ones that aren't ours to our absent comrades." Mimi twitched but raised her staff, her digimon's instincts calming her again. Sora prayed she wouldn't lose her head.

Sora caught Tai's eye and they exchanged a confused look. What were these digimon talking about, why were they so strong, and how did they know who they were? Why did they want their spirits so badly? Tai propped himself up on his armored elbows. The two of them had been great friends, somewhat similar in personalities except for Tai's recklessness and Sora's sagacity, until college had taken up all of Tai's time and Sora had been drafted into the army. They had always had an odd intuition regarding what the other was thinking.

Tai grit his teeth, his pointed canines making the expression dangerous. "Who are you?" he demanded. "Why are you after our spirits?"

"Impertinent child," snarled the dark angel digimon.

Odissmon leapt backward into the air with a great flap of her wings. Dust circled the spot she had stood. "I want them dead," she growled. "Do it."

"Of course, Lady Odissmon," said the fire digimon. He advanced on Tai's fallen form. Tai leapt to his feet, fists held up and fire blazing around his wrists.

Sora looked fearfully to her friends. The red-haired insectoid digimon, Inanimon, launched herself at Izzy and they fought with flashing, bright electrical attacks. Joe raised his knives, ready to help his friend, but was grabbed from behind by a white-winged digimon with long arms representing a gargoyle. Sora watched, dread running through her veins, as more digimon advanced on them, preparing their attacks. She looked back to the avian digimon who watched her fear with twisted pleasure in her eyes.

The digimon, Odissmon, licked her lips. "Your spirit is mine now," she said. Cries rang out throughout the cavern, but Sora could not tell if they came from her friends or the enemies surrounding them.

Odissmon sank into a crouch, but paused at the sound only their acute ears could pick up. She and Sora looked past the battle in time to see the wall of the temple explode. A ferocious, mechanical roar could be heard as chunks of stone and brick flew at them. Dust flooded the room and digimon abandoned their foes to run for cover. Sora ducked around the fleeing digimon, losing sight of Odissmon almost instantly. She feared for Matt and Kari – they had not spirit evolved and were thus vulnerable to the falling rubble.

Sora used her wings to sweep around the fleeing digimon and the chaos around her. She froze at the sight of glowing yellow eyes twenty feet above her. As the dust above cleared, Machinedramon could be seen firing his cannons at will, striking whatever he laid eyes on. The temple shook dangerously beneath her feet. If this kept up, the place would be in ruins. The ceiling of the temple, however, was beginning to crack open under the assault of Machinedramon's cannons – perhaps they could fly out if the rubble above did not crush them. But only she, TK, and Izzy could fly…

A great blast shook the temple and Sora was knocked to the floor. Rubble collapsed on top of her and panic flooded her. She heaved the chunks off of her armored chest. How had Matt and Kari survived this? They weren't digimon. They didn't have the protection she did. Furthermore, she had lost sight of the others once Machinedramon had showed up. What if they were hurt in the blasts? She pushed another bit of the temple off of her right wing. It slid down the slight slope and she looked to her left. The chasm was less than a foot away from her.

Sora stood, squinting through the settling dust. The sounds of the battle had quieted somewhat, but she wondered with a twinge of worry if perhaps her hearing had been damaged in the explosion. As the dust cleared, she caught sight of the orange and red fire digimon, the one bent on fighting Tai, grab something in the jumbled mess of what remained of the temple. Tai's digimon form was brought limply out of the rubble and the fire digimon held him by the throat. Tai wrapped his hands around the digimon's spiked wrist armor. The digimon hissed something to Tai, squeezing his throat tighter.

Fury washed over Sora, and whether it was from herself or Valkyrimon's righteous instincts, she was not sure. She launched herself at the fire digimon with a flap of her huge white wings. With her sword drawn she slashed at him. Sora saw his surprised expression for only a moment before he released Tai, ducking around the slash of her sword. "Annoying pest!" he said. "His spirit will be mine!"  
Fire shot from his palms and Sora dodged it, admiring the agility her new wings gave her. Tai tackled the fire digimon and they both fell to the ground. Sora nearly lost them in the tussle of punches and flames. She glanced to her right and saw Izzy, Joe, and TK picking themselves out of the rubble, still in digimon form, and breathed a sigh of relief. They were safe. The temple, lying almost completely in ruins, at last let in enough light for her to see properly. She scanned the chaos, searching for their remaining comrades. Then she saw Mimi, pressed against the only standing wall of the temple, generating a shield that surrounded Matt and Kari. The dark angel digimon faced them, a bow and arrow of light drawn, preparing to shoot.

Sora sped toward them. She almost did not notice the machine dragon digimon awakening again, lying in a heap of metal and gears. She hesitated, and looked at the red light blinking in its eye. Sora had only a moment to react her world was engulfed in an explosion.

* * *

"_Sora!_"

Tai's yell tore at his throat as his friend disappeared in a burst of light and flames. The shockwave knocked his attacker off of him, but Tai forgot about him completely. Sora had most likely just been hurt in the blast and nothing was going to stop him from getting to her. Tai scrambled to his feet, smoke wafting from the vents on his wrists. His once shining armor had become dirty and dusty.

He leapt over heaps of rubble to find Joe, still a digimon, kneeling awkwardly over what he hoped was his friend. As he drew near, he found Machinedramon gone and Sora lying amidst the filthy floor, human once again. Her eyes were closed and a dark stain spread across her torso. He scanned her motionless form, fear spreading like ice through his veins. He could just make out the faint rise and fall of her chest. Joe looked up to him, his expression unreadable beneath his helmet. "Get her and go," he said as the others hurried to his side. "We need to get out of here before those digimon get back."

Tai nodded. For once he could not speak, as though the situation had locked his voice. Matt arrived beside him and stared down at his girlfriend, his jaw clenched and his eyes hard. Anger arose dimly in the back of Tai's mind. _At least I tried to protect her,_ he thought, watching Matt. _You didn't._ Tai watched Matt clench his blue digivice and wondered if he was thinking the same. The others joined them, and Mimi gasped at the sight of Sora and covered her mouth with her gloved hands. Tai glanced at his sister to find her expression pained. She held her arms as though trying to comfort herself.

When the smoke had ceased wafting from his wrists, Tai gently bent and scooped Sora up in his arms, careful not to harm her. She hung limply, and her face was smeared with soot or dust. She looked so small and weak compared to the winged warrior she had been moments before. He could not tell if the stain on her shirt was blood or if something in the explosion had struck her. He prayed she had simply been knocked out from the force of the blast.

"There's a path we can take to get out of here," came Izzy's voice above them. Tai glanced up to find him hovering ten or so feet from the floor, his wings beating furiously. "And it looks like…a train as well."  
"A train?" Tai couldn't believe it. Knowing the digital world, it was probably missing tracks, an engine, or simply wouldn't run at all.

TK flew up to join him, his eight wings motionless but nevertheless carrying his armored form. "It looks like the best way to go. If that train works, it'd be a miracle."  
"Let's go, then," Matt said. His voice was harsh, and he moved to go first despite his lack of a digimon form. Izzy and TK followed, hovering above the group.

Tai moved gingerly, avoiding stepping too roughly over the mess. He didn't want Sora hurt any worse than she already was. Worry settled in a pit in his stomach. She'd be fine, he told himself. They would get her somewhere safe and nurse her back to health. As he moved past the remaining wall of the temple, he found himself overlooking a harsh, winding path that led down into a dense forest. Sitting on the tracks at the base of the cliffs was indeed a small passenger train. The sheer cliffs and the narrowness of the path reminded him of a beachside area he and his friends used to visit as kids. One of his buddies had dared him to descend. He'd broken his arm on the way down but nevertheless made it, and despite his mom's anger at his stupidity he had been pretty proud of himself.

Mimi moved up beside him, clutching her staff. Her hidden eyes, covered by the fox like mask, gazed down at the path. "Umm," she said. "This looks pretty dangerous."

"As humans, maybe," said Joe, floating next to her. "But as digimon, I'm sure we'll have no trouble."

Matt had already begun his descent, but TK flew down next to Kari and picked her up. Tai sent him a grateful glance. He didn't know what he'd do if Kari fell while an unconscious Sora was resting in his arms. Mimi suddenly leapt down, landing with grace on the path below. Tai was impressed with her; the Mimi he knew would never attempt such a feat. Maybe their digimon forms would be good for them not just in combat. Tai and Joe followed the path down, Joe keeping a distance as he floated awkwardly behind him. Tai's digimon form offered perfect balance, but he couldn't imagine what it must have been like to have to hover a foot above the ground down the path. Tai glanced behind him to find Joe holding on to the cliff wall with one huge hand.

An angry cry broke the silence. "_Get them!_"

Odissmon suddenly swooped over his head. He ducked and her claws raked through his hair. Tai swore loudly and heard Joe let out a frustrated noise. The digimon hadn't been driven off by Machinedramon's explosion after all. The eight of them were vulnerable on the cliffs. He hurried, ignoring the instability of his footing on the rough path. He needed to get Sora to safety before he could fight back.

Electricity and light flashed above him. The angel digimon had appeared as well, shooting shining arrows at Izzy and TK above them. Izzy returned the shots with crackling electricity from his clawed hands, but the digimon was too quick. TK swooped down to the train, Kari still in his arms, and passed Mimi. She fired smoky purple dragons from her staff, aiming for the dark angel. Tai smelled smoke and realized that the fire digimon he'd been fighting could not have been far away.

"Come on! Hurry!"

Tai did not recognize the voice until he skidded to a halt in front of the train. Waiting inside, with the doors open, was a short, caped figure. TK landed beside him and Kari let out a gasp, twisting out of TK's arms. She ran to the digimon and hugged him, almost knocking his pointed hat off of his head. "Wizardmon!" she cried.

Tai stared. The last he'd seen of this digimon, he had been killed by a vampiric digimon in the real world, Myotismon. Gratitude filled his heart as he recalled the memory. Wizardmon had sacrificed himself to save Kari and had died in the process. The caped digimon returned her hug but when his eyes met Tai's, they were grave and determined. "Get on the Trailmon," he said. "It will take you to safety. Hurry!"

Without needing further instruction, Tai hurried onto the train. Cushioned seats lined the walls, giving passengers about two feet of walkway between. He gently lowered Sora onto the nearest seat, careful to avoid accidentally brushing her with his pointed armor. Fatigue weighed on him suddenly and without warning, light filled his vision and he stepped back, stunned.

When it was over, Tai stared at his hands, human once more. Anger and panic combined in his chest. He may have needed to fight, and now he'd lost his spirit form too early. What if the others still needed him? He would be useless to them now. A gentle touch found his hand and he jumped. Sora had awakened, her gaze calm. Unaware to her injuries and the fighting going on outside, she simply looked at him. Tai bent closer to her. "Sora – are you all right?" he said.

She bit her lip. At least she was starting to show concern for herself, Tai realized. "I'm fine," she stammered, but froze when Wizardmon, Matt, and Kari entered the train.

"Get on the train!" he shouted outside, clutching his staff. He glanced at Tai. "They won't be able to hold the Shades off for much longer."

Kari trembled beside him. "The Shades?" she said quietly, but was forced aside as Joe and TK arrived on the train. They moved away from the door quickly and both regressed into their human forms. Joe collapsed onto the seat closest to him. Tai understood how he felt; fatigue weighed on him as though someone had tied sandbags to his arms.

"Come on, Stingmon, Sakuyamon!" Wizardmon called to them out an open window. As the train's engine roared to life, Mimi was next to climb aboard, followed closely by Izzy. He landed softly on the floor, and his beating wings blew the air in the train around. The two of them were next to regress into humans. Joe jumped when something crashed into the roof – their attackers had not forgotten about them, and weren't about to let them escape that easily. But then the train lurched forward, and Tai sat down quickly, having almost fallen from the sudden motion. It sailed along its tracks at an impressive speed. The eight of them and Wizardmon were silent as claws scrabbled frantically to stay on board the roof. Then a screeching sound trailed down the ceiling, and silence settled around them.

Kari stared at the ceiling, her pale brown eyes wide. "She's gone," she mumbled.

Joe moved to Sora, holding on to the poles and railings for support. "How is she?" he asked. Upon noticing her eyes were open, he said, "Sora, how are you feeling?"

Sora hesitated. Her delicate hands felt along the dark stain on her stomach. Tai winced at the sight. "I'm okay," she said.

"We need to get her help," said Matt. His face was set in a grim expression.

"I don't need it," Sora mumbled. She continued to mess with the stain, her face oddly distant. Tai realized she was probably in shock and his eyebrows pulled together. She may have been hurt more than she realized. His fists clenched at the memory – it was those damned digimon who had hurt her, who had caused all of this. He spared a glance at his friends. They were either looking at her or at the floor, too tired to make sense what was happening. Once more Tai noticed how insignificant and weak they were after losing their digimon forms.

He turned to Wizardmon. The quiet digimon was standing, his expression unreadable. "What the hell is going on?" he demanded.

* * *

Sleepiness pulled at Izzy's eyes, but he forced them to stay open. Whatever was wrong with the digital world now, he needed to be at his full attention to figure it out. Wizardmon glanced at Tai, unperturbed at his rudeness. Izzy hadn't known the digimon at all, but he had heard the others talk about how brave he had been trying to get Kari's crest to her ten years ago. Apparently his data had somehow made it back to the digital world and he'd been reborn.

Tai's eyes narrowed. "We almost died escaping that place. We deserve to know what's going on."  
"Why am I so tired?" Joe grumbled, reclining in his seat and completely changing the subject. Tai scowled at him.

Wizardmon spared him a glance. "Spirit evolving takes a lot of energy. Until you all become stronger, you will feel tired after you regress back to your human form." Izzy sighed inwardly. He wanted nothing more than to find somewhere to sleep.

"Who are the Shades?" said Kari, in that quiet, wise way of hers. After ten years, she had probably changed the least. Even as a child she'd had wisdom far beyond her years.

Wizardmon closed his eyes briefly. "There are seven Shades total," he said. "They were created when your crests were destroyed and are made up of the negative data generated. Each of them represents the opposite of its respective crest."

Silence greeted his words. Izzy's mind worked frantically. Who had his Shade been? "There are only seven?" he said.

The digimon nodded. "As far as I know, there is not yet a Shade of Darkness." He nodded to Kari. Her eyes solemnly watched the floor.

"Then like…is Izzy's Shade really dumb or something?" asked Mimi. Joe grinned.

"No," said Wizardmon. "Inanimon's intelligence rivals yours." He gave Izzy a nod. "However, she has the ability to make memories temporarily disappear. This is why she is called the Shade of the Void."

Sora piped up from her spot on the seat. She carefully raised herself up into a sitting position. "She did that to me."

Inanimon…Izzy thought back to the battle. Inanimon had been the female digimon with dragonfly wings and red and purple armor. She had been flirtatious and quirky, and had regarded the dark angel digimon quite highly. He wondered for a moment why his Shade was female.

"Who is my Shade?" Tai demanded to know.

"Pavormon is the Shade of Fear. He can tap into his opponents' hidden fears and bring them to life, as though the memory is happening at that instant."

Tai nodded. Izzy remembered the fire digimon who had tried so hard to kill Tai back at the temple.

"Odissmon is the leader," he continued, and gave Sora a nod. "She is the Shade of Hate. Each Shade can control a specific type of digimon, and she controls avian types." He glanced to TK. "Second in command is Crucimon, the Shade of Despair. He has the ability to force his enemies to relive their worst memories."

Izzy closed his eyes, remembering when the dark angel digimon had afflicted him with his ability. Terror flooded his heart at the memory. He remembered Crucimon's sneering, slanted blue eyes all too clearly.

"Are Crucimon and Inanimon um…together?" asked Mimi, crossing her legs awkwardly.

Wizardmon nodded. "Yes." Heat rose to Izzy's face, but he wasn't sure why he was embarrassed. It was, however, odd that his Shade and TK's were a couple. "Your Shade is called Mentirimon, Mimi, the Shade of Deceit. He controls plant type digimon and has the ability to make his lies very convincing." Mimi shuddered and dropped her gaze.

"And mine?" asked Joe, watching Wizardmon calmly. He had his hands folded in his lap as though they were simply talking about a business transaction.

"Desomon is the Shade of the Forsaken. He is an odd Shade who has been seen, at times, switching sides of the fight at will."

"He attacks the other Shades?"

Wizardmon nodded. "It seems he will switch sides whenever he feels like it for the fun of it."

"Maybe he'll fight with us at some point," said Matt. The blond had been silent, switching his attention from Sora to Wizardmon intermittently.

The digimon turned to Matt. "Your Shade is Luxurmon, the Shade of Instability. He is the only Shade who does not represent a crest. Instead he is related to your spirit, Justimon of Chaos. He controls beast type digimon."

Matt's brow pulled together and his eyes dimmed. Izzy's brain worked to understand the relationship between Justimon and Luxurmon and why Matt's crest was missing his own negative reconstruction.

"What are those?" said Kari suddenly. She pointed past Wizardmon's pointed hat and out the window. Izzy tilted his head to see. The train was traveling across some clear, grassy plains, and drifting across it were several huge, oddly colored tubes. Izzy stared as they zoomed across the grass, apparently connected to the sky.

Wizardmon glanced out the window. "Those are data streams," he said. "They transport data from the digital world to the real world and back but until the Shades arrived, they were not visible. They are an example of the volatility of the digital world now."

"What happens if they hit us?" asked Izzy.

"Any physical thing it touches will transport you to anywhere in the digital world. It's best to avoid them if you can, but the more Shades that are around, the more the data streams tend to show up."

The eight of them regarded this with silence. They'd spent enough time separated in the digital world – hopefully the data streams would never force them to experience that again.

"What are you doing here, Wizardmon?" asked TK. His hair was mussed and at some point in the chaos he had lost his hat. "Why did you come here with a train?"

"I guard the Temple of Spirits. I was employed by the Guardians." The caped digimon glanced out the window where trees and landscapes rushed by them. "When I realized the Temple was under attack, I knew that you all must have arrived at last."

"Who are the Guardians?" said Tai, crossing his arms.

Wizardmon glanced at Tai's orange digivice. "They are your current spirits," he said. "They gave their lives protecting the digital world from the Shades and when they died, they were made into spirits for each of you. They represented a certain aspect of the digital world." Izzy thought back to the electrical attacks he had used as his digimon. Did his spirit represent thunder? He closed his eyes a moment, remembering the feeling of flying for the first time. Wizardmon had called his spirit Stingmon.

"We all have spirits?" asked Kari. She held her dark digivice in her lap. With a jolt, Izzy remembered that she had not collected her spirit. His heart sank. If it was back at the temple, there was no way they'd be able to retrieve it for her.

Sadness swept its way through Wizardmon's expression and he turned towards Kari. "Your spirit is…I have it, Kari, but I would understand if you don't want it."

"Why not?"

"At some point, the Shades got a hold of it and it became corrupted. I tried to heal it, but the corruption ran too deep." He conjured the spirit in his hands. Two black, folded wings concealed a figure resting on the hexagonal platform.

Tai's eyes widened at the sight of it. "What will happen to her if she spirit evolves into it?"

"There is no telling," was the grave response.

Izzy glanced at Kari. She bit her lip and stared at the evil-looking spirit. "I'll take it," she said. Izzy knew that she was thinking only of the others' safety in making this decision. She had never put herself first. He noticed Tai's scowl as her digivice absorbed her spirit. The symbol on her screen represented a thin crescent moon.

Wizardmon turned to them, using his staff as support. "The Shades are becoming stronger every day. They are taking over villages and corrupting digimon, making them their slaves. Every time they absorb the data of a digimon who defies them, they become stronger, and in return something happens to the bearer of the Shade's crest."

"What happens?" Izzy asked out of his natural curiosity.

The digimon shook his head. "I don't yet know. The Shades are also, however, finding their beast spirits, one by one."

Tai sat up a little straighter in his seat. "Beast spirits?"

"Yes. For every Shade there is a respective beast spirit. Each of you have your own beast spirits as well," he continued, glancing around at them. "They are…considerably more difficult to control than the human spirits you now possess. However, the digimon who were chosen were all from the northern Light Sector, and the beast spirits are scattered across it as a result. We must head for Light Sector as soon as possible to prepare you for facing the Shades."

For a moment, the only sound that could be heard was the rumble of the train's engine and the rap of the wheels against the tracks. Izzy wondered for a moment what his beast spirit might look like. Would he have as much trouble controlling it as Matt had controlling Justimon?

Kari tore her eyes away from her digivice and asked something he had been wondering himself. "Why did the Shades try so hard to kill us back there? Is it just because we were called here to stop them?"

Wizardmon bowed his head. "The Shades are not considered complete digimon. Their data is very unstable and they are responsible for much of the chaos throughout the digital world. The only thing that will make them 'whole' is to take the spirit from their respective chosen. Once this happens, they become immensely more powerful."

Joe shook his head. "Well, that's great. Why should we try then? If they beat us, we make them stronger."

"Your spirits' levels contend with the Shades,'" said Wizardmon. "No other digimon possesses the same level that you and the Shades do."

Izzy had wondered at what rank of power his digimon had been. "And what level is that?"

"It is called hybrid, perhaps because half of its power comes from the human controlling it."

Izzy nodded. This was a lot to think about, but he appreciated the information all the same. Tai held his digivice in one hand, looking ready to turn back into his digimon form and attack the Shades once more. He glanced to Sora. The redhead was slumped in her seat, her eyes barely staying open. They would need to get her help soon.

He jumped when a voice echoed suddenly around them. "Interesting story. So these are the kids who are going to save us?"

The eight of them glanced around, stunned and confused. Wizardmon, however, spoke to apparently no one in particular. Realization hit Izzy and he stifled a smile. "Yes, Trailmon. Are we almost there?"

"Trailmon!" exclaimed Tai. His mouth had dropped open and he lurched forward in his seat. "This train is a digimon?"

"Yes, and be thankful I'm letting you ride without a ticket," growled the voice dryly.

Wizardmon shook his head, his hat waving. "Just get us to the base."

* * *

A/N: Well that was a lot of information. I hope it didn't bore you guys D: I don't really like this chapter. I was pretty sleepy when I wrote it lmao.

Next time: Wizardmon explains to them how they can (sometimes) return to the real world and attend to their real world lives. So some of the human world next chapter and a bit of hanging around this base Wizardmon mentioned and thinking about stuff. Not a lot of action coming up, but there will be pretty soon. Hope you enjoyed!


	4. New

Sorry this took a while! I really don't know what was wrong. I'm trying to make these chapters shorter, so as a result, I update slower. Yep. Anyway have some character development :D and get prepared to meet Joe's niece (in a flashback).

* * *

TK glanced over at Kari. The younger girl stared at her digivice, turning it over in her hands with her spirit's symbol shining on the front. She caught his gaze and smiled at him. He returned it, knowing she'd been frantic when he had disappeared down that chasm. He still had not mentioned to her the odd sense of familiarity he had experienced when he'd spirit evolved. The angel-like digimon had regarded his mind, emerging next to its own, with happiness and almost seemed to greet him. TK didn't understand it, but he hoped he could find someone with whom he could talk about it.

The eight of them had been, for the majority of the trip, mostly silent. Matt sat by Sora, holding her up and tending to whatever need she voiced, though she rarely complained. She looked simply as though she needed to sleep, like the rest of them. Matt had checked the dark stain on her stomach and had found a slight burn with a gash below it. The wound was not deep but Joe worried about infection, especially given the sensitivity of burns. Sora insisted she needed nothing for it. TK sent Tai a glance. The older man was glowering at Matt as he tended to his girlfriend.

Kari turned to Wizardmon. The caped digimon watched the scenery impassively. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking. "Wizardmon," she began, and he turned his glazed eyes to her. "Our partners...where are they?"

The digimon broke her gaze and declined his head. TK's heart twisted at his reaction. "I'm afraid I don't know," he said, his voice small as though he was trying to misdirect the unfortunate news away from him. "They were prepared to join the fight against the Shades, but one day they simply...disappeared. No one knows what happened to them."

TK felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, and he stared at the floor. Patamon had disappeared? Had someone erased his data, attacked him, destroyed him? He'd experienced the loss of his partner once before. He'd come back, but the thought of carrying around a helpless digi-egg again sent shivers down his spine. Would he even come back now, with the digital world as unstable as it was? He sent Kari another glance. She clutched her black digivice as though the corrupted spirit inside would offer her comfort. He wished they were still together, that he could console her like Matt was doing to Sora now, though he knew their relationship was strained. Instead she ignored him, didn't consider him at all, and the sinking feeling grew larger.

Mimi sat back in her seat. Her normally flawless face was smeared with soot from the battle and her hair was somewhat tangled. "I hope they're okay," she murmured.

Joe was leaning forward in his seat, his face in his hands. TK knew he worried for Gomamon, but his niece was also his main concern. TK had met the little girl once. She was bright, cheerful, and had proudly declared her mathematical ability was far beyond her years. She reminded TK of a less modest Kari. Izzy sat silently beside him, pondering the scenery as it blew past them.

Wizardmon turned to them. "We are approaching the base. If you desire, I will explain to you how you may return to your world for intervals at a time."

They stared at him. Tai's head jerked up to meet his gaze. "What? We can go home?"

"There are restrictions," was the response, "but yes."

Wizardmon went on to explain that so long as the eight of them were together in the digital world, they could open a gate using their digivices. Once in the real world, they were able to return whenever they wanted, regardless if they were around the others. He showed them how to configure their digivices to prepare for travel. TK was grateful they were not stuck here, but he privately thought that the timing of their latest adventure was somewhat unfortunate. He would be starting fall quarter at his university in just a few weeks and though he had never been a great student like Joe, he had wanted to begin his first quarter on a positive, organized note. At least he'd have a good excuse if he fell behind. He sighed tiredly and crossed his ankles, then scowled. He'd mismatched his socks again.

The Trailmon came to a stop and they lined up against the wall opposite TK, pressing their hands and faces against the glass to get a better view of their destination. It was a fantastic mansion nestled into a hillside. Though not as large as some TK had seen, it looked about three stories tall, with wooden windowsills and brick siding. Several Trailmon tracks ran beside the wooden front entrance and disappeared underneath a large cavern beneath a cliff to the mansion's left.

Mimi stared up at the mansion Wizardmon had called a base. "Wow, this place looks great," she said, opening the window for a better look. "Are we staying here?"

"If you wish, or you may return to your world," he said. "We can get Sora here taken care of, at the very least."

Matt nodded and led his girlfriend gently off the train, his arm wrapped protectively around her lower back. The others filed off one by one into the sunlight, Trailmon boisterously offering his goodbyes, but TK hung back.

He turned to Wizardmon as the others approached the mansion. "Wizardmon, my spirit...what is its name? What does it represent?"

The caped digimon bowed his head. "I did not know the Guardians before they became spirits," he said. "But yours is Seraphimon, the spirit of Hope."

* * *

Izzy allowed Matt and the others to get Sora situated. He didn't want to look on as they cared for her; it would be awkward, and he had something he wanted to do anyway. He told the others where he would be should they need him and headed outside.

The interior of the mansion was not fantastically decorated as though the owner had loads of money, but was still striking. The walls were cream-colored, and the curtains lining the windows were a faint, eye-catching blue. A chandelier hung in the main hallway and statues of digimon Izzy did not recognize lined either side of the entrance as though guarding it. He did not know much about interior design, but Mimi had expressed her approval upon coming in. Izzy opened the wooden door and stepped outside.

The sunlight warmed his skin and a cool breeze blew by, brought from a nearby lake. Across the Trailmon tracks, a forest stretched for a couple miles, and behind it he could see a small village. It was mostly composed of huts and tents but a few taller buildings were visible.

Izzy stood on the stone entryway and brought out his purple digivice. The screen lit up at his touch, the lightning bolt symbol reappearing on the screen as though attuned to him. He wondered if he could use the others' spirits, or if he was limited to Stingmon for now. He'd have to ask Joe if he could borrow his digivice at some point. Inquisitive thoughts rattled around his brain as he pressed the largest button on his digivice.

The train ride had offered him a chance to relax and recuperate from spirit evolving the first time, and he hoped he had enough energy to do it again. This time when the light and digital code enveloped him, the changes seemed to come faster, and he emerged as Stingmon within a few seconds. Electric power coursed through his new body. He took a moment to take in the new senses and sensations his spirit offered him. His eyes picked up a couple of bird-like digimon flying together overhead, and he watched them, his odd eyes picking up every detail of their feathers and movements. Once they had soared out of sight, Izzy kicked off the ground, his wings beating behind him.

He quickly realized that he had more aerial control than any avian digimon, and, after a few experimental laps and airborne displays around the mansion, that he could fly backward as well. He flew for a while, letting himself become accustomed to Stingmon's quick reflexes and seemingly tireless beat of his wings. At one point he was so high above the mansion that he allowed his wings to still for a moment, and he fell a few feet before he powered his wings again, sending him sailing over the fields at a breakneck speed. He had never been very religious, but he thanked whoever was watching him for giving him a spirit that could fly. After giving it some thought, he decided to try and commune with the spirit, just to see if there was more than just a presence of a mind beside his. But after several failed attempts of talking to himself and even trying to see if the spirit reacted to his thoughts, he decided that the guardian Stingmon was nothing more than a vague personality sitting beside his, made up of bravery and cunning.

Izzy's thoughts wandered as he continued to experiment with his spirit. The others' spirits were interesting; he couldn't wait to see what Kari's would be, and he wondered if Matt would ever learn to control his. Izzy had noticed TK's spirit had been marked with the crest of Hope and wondered for a moment if something had happened to Patamon. Had TK's partner somehow become his spirit? He didn't want to offer his theory to the young man yet – it would probably be a huge shock for TK, and it was only a speculation. He'd have to give the Shades more thought, he knew, because if they were the opposite reconstructions of their crests and the chosen themselves, maybe he could figure out their weaknesses. They had not used their beast spirits in their attack, but even so, they had been vastly powerful. Izzy remembered Inanimon throwing him to the side as he attempted to save Joe from a hit. And some had separate, strange mind-altering abilities…Izzy remembered the memory Crucimon forced him to experience again. Chills worked their way through his armor, even as he sped around the roof of the mansion. He hoped he never fought Crucimon again.

He was oddly thankful for the sudden adventure they had been forced into – it had come at an opportune time for him. Izzy had needed the distraction from the real world, and though they weren't stuck here, at least it would give him time to think about the mess he had left behind. If only Tentomon was here with me, he thought, fighting down a sigh. His little partner probably wouldn't have been able to keep up with him, but he'd have liked flying beside him.

Izzy stopped in mid air when he noticed a figure standing at the mansion's entrance. His keen eyes showed him that it was Mimi, leaning against the brick wall of the mansion and waiting for him. Izzy zoomed down and allowed Stingmon's spirit to regress back into his digivice a foot above the ground, and as he landed he nearly fell over with the sudden fatigue. Straightening himself, he hoped Mimi hadn't noticed. She smiled at him. "Hey, Izzy," she began. "Nice flying."

"How is Sora?" he said. The last he had seen of her, she had been stumbling towards a bedroom while Matt held her up by her waist. Izzy had never been close to Sora, but they had been through a lot together over the years.

Mimi shifted her weight, and Izzy knew that she had not come out here to talk about Sora. Izzy and Mimi had gone to high school together, being the same age, and she knew more about him than he often realized. "She's resting. Wizardmon says she will be okay, but she seems really weak. I'm kind of worried for her."

Izzy swallowed and tightened his jaw, hoping she didn't want comfort, because he had no idea how to offer it. In the end he nodded and looked away, and she sighed.

"Look, Izzy, I wanted to ask you something. When I first spirit evolved, something weird happened."  
His attention snapped back to her face and his curiosity spiked. "What was it?"

A distant, thoughtful expression clouded her features and he watched her struggle to explain. "I…it was like, I could…sense other people in my head. And I think…" Her reddish-brown eyes met his, and he grew uncomfortable under the intensity of her expression. "I think I could tell that you had just become your digimon for the first time. You were trying to learn all your new senses at once, and you were excited to learn about being a digimon. I could tell you were experiencing something you'd always wanted to know about."

Izzy blinked at her. An unsettling feeling churned in his stomach. "That's…that's exactly what I was thinking about," he muttered.

"Well, there's more. This is so hard to explain – it was like there were different color lights in my head, and in these lights were symbols…like when I found you, the symbol was two circles with lines between them…"

The information clinked together in Izzy's head at her description. "That sounds like my crest, Mimi."

Her eyes widened. "Oh! Gosh, I can't believe I forgot what everyone's crest looks like. It's been so long."

Izzy nodded, hardly listening. He was busy analyzing and processing what Mimi seemed to be telling him. If she was saying what he thought she was saying, how useful would this be to them? "So you're saying that you can detect our emotions while you're in your digimon form?"

"Yeah, I think that's what happens," she said. "What do you think I should do about it? It's kind of weird. I'm not sure if I want to be in your guys' heads all the time." She wrinkled her nose, as though the thought of invading someone else's feelings involuntarily was repulsive. He almost wished he had this power, if only to find out more about it, but even he had to admit it must have been strange.

"I don't know," he said. "But, if you can…try to learn more about it. It may save our lives someday."

Mimi nodded, her expression uncharacteristically serious. "Okay. I'll try." Her playful grin returned, and she gave Izzy a searching look that had him shifting his weight uneasily. "Are you still going out with that girl from our high school, Izzy? You guys were _so_ cute together!"

Izzy's heart jolted. He wasn't sure he could keep the grimace out of his expression as he walked past her. "No," he said bluntly, "I'm not." He ignored Mimi's searching gaze as he reentered the mansion, his collar uncomfortably hot and an unpleasant iciness running through his veins.

* * *

"We seem to have misplaced Izzy and Mimi."

Joe chuckled at TK's airy humor. As most of them sat in the mansion's den, waiting for Izzy and Mimi to return and for Matt to let them know what they would do with Sora, he watched the younger man chat easily with Kari. Joe remembered when he'd been small enough to need rescuing from situations like falling into an ocean or getting snagged by a vegetable monster. The latter was probably not something most eight-year-olds worried about, though for the eight of them, it was just another day in the digital world. Nowadays, he wouldn't be surprised if Joe would need TK's help at some point, unless he kept his eccentricity and his dry sense of humor.

The memory of himself saving TK from drowning brought an unpleasant, more recent recollection to the front of his consciousness, and he sat back against the comfortable, squishy davenport, rubbing his eyes behind his glasses. He and his niece Emily had sat together in the den of his apartment, huddled together because she had been scared of the approaching thunderstorm. She had recently come into his care, and without knowing any other way to distract her, he began telling stories of his adventures as a chosen child. As Joe and TK, then thirteen and eight years old, traveled across the water on Ikkakumon's back, a Megaseadramon attacked, and the two of them were thrown into the water. Joe had mentioned to Emily his attempt to save TK.

"But, Uncle Joe, you can't swim," she had said, giggling and pressing the blanket to her mouth, her big dark eyes round.

"I know I can't, but luckily my digimon could," he said, and Emily laughed. "My crest chose that moment to glow. Which was fortunate, because I was about to drown."

His little niece giggled harder and Joe smiled, thinking that perhaps he could be a good guardian to her after all, even if she found his near-death experiences uproariously amusing. He laughed with her, tickling her, and when the thunder clapped outside, she was laughing too hard to hear it. When their bellies hurt from laughter, Emily retrieved her mug of hot chocolate from the coffee table and they both sat back, suddenly tired. His niece cradled the mug in her small hands. Joe thought about reaching for the remote so they could watch TV together, but he noticed the expression on her face and paused, frowning.

"What is it?" he said. He was wearing sweatpants and an old t-shirt and had placed both his bare feet on the table, something he never would have done before.

Emily took a sip from her cup. When she looked at him, brown blotted her upper lip, and he fought down a laugh. "I was just thinking…what would happen if my parents don't get better," she said softly.

Joe's heart clenched. He thought of his brother and his wife, lying comatose in a hospital, unresponsive but peaceful. His brother had been there when he'd broken his arm on the playground and when their father began drinking through several bottles of beer a day, and the three of them were left to take care of themselves. Their father was an alcoholic to this day, and Joe's oldest brother was practicing medicine abroad, so when Emily had needed an alternate place to stay, Joe had been the only other living relative available. When she first landed under his care, he had worried that he'd be too busy to give her the attention she needed, given that he was trying to get through graduate school. But Mimi had shown up and offered to help him out. He never knew she knew so much about taking care of a six-year-old.

And now they were contemplating adoption. Joe swallowed. He had no idea what to say. He wished Mimi was there to fix the situation for him, but she was out at some party. Joe knew that he'd have to tackle issues like this without her help at some point anyway.

He had turned to her. "Is that something you want to start talking about?" he asked, and he knew she understood.

She bit her lower lip, her expression distant. "I suppose we should," she had said.

Joe opened his eyes. He was back in the mansion in the digital world with his friends, his ankles crossed and his digivice in his pocket. The others sat and chatted around him. He sighed to himself. Should the time come, Emily had been willing to be adopted, and Joe would not have hesitated for a moment. It would have been awful circumstances, but his brother had been there for him plenty of times over the years. Joe knew he could at least take care of his daughter.

Izzy and Mimi returned at about the same time Matt came out of the room nearest them, explaining that Sora was sleeping. Despite admitting that she would probably be all right, Joe noticed that his face was drawn and hard, and his mannerisms were animated.

It was decided that Sora would stay the night there, given that she was still injured, and would be safe under Wizardmon's protective incantations. He assured them that he could disguise and hide the mansion for the night. Matt wasn't happy about it, and he even offered to stay with her, but in the end Sora would stay alone with just Wizardmon to look after her. As they tried to decide when to return to the digital world, Izzy mentioned that he had work and class, and several of them agreed, including Joe. By the time the final time was decided, four o' clock the next day, Tai was exasperated and scowling at them. He had wanted to get an earlier start tracking down the Shades and their beast spirits.

A blinking red light in their digivices signaled that they were ready to be brought back to the real world. Joe glanced around at his friends, gathering together; most were tired from spirit evolving but eager to return home. As Wizardmon wished them well, Joe looked down at his digivice in time to see a brilliant white light and an odd tug behind his neck, and for a moment he thought he was becoming Depthmon again.

When his eyes blinked open, he lay on his back, familiar scents wafting around him. He registered a white ceiling above him and blankets underneath him. Joe jerked his head up. He was lying on his bed in his apartment. He took in his bookshelf, packed with textbooks and references, sitting beside his massive desk, which not only held his computer but plenty of space for studying. He kept his whole apartment sparse and organized, and even when Emily moved in, he somehow managed to keep the place neat.

Remembering his niece's name sent a jolt of adrenaline through his veins, and he shot a look at the clock on his bedside table. It was barely after one in the afternoon – Emily wouldn't be home for a while. Relief flooded through him. He'd be home in time to see his niece return.

Joe swung his legs over the bed, stood up, and walked into the kitchen at the rumble from his stomach. He had a habit of snacking throughout the day, though his diet mostly consisted of apples that he ate while huddled over textbooks. As he reached his kitchen, the counters open to the living room, he froze at the figure sitting on his couch. He leapt up and let out a yelp when she turned.

Her face scrunched up with laughter at his reaction. "Did I scare you?" said Mimi, laughing and doubling over.

He forced himself to rearrange his expression. Joe had leapt backwards into his refrigerator and his elbow was stinging from contact with the handle. "Kind of," he admitted, hoping he didn't look too freaked out. A scare like that would have really messed with him not too long ago, but he'd since learned to be less fearful.

Perhaps Mimi remembered this as well, because the teasing dropped from her face and she smiled at him. "I'm sorry. But uh, do you know what I'm doing here? When we got transported we were outside on the sidewalk."

Joe shook his head. "I don't know. I guess we had to be teleported somewhere safe so we just wouldn't reappear randomly and scare someone."

"Ah. I guess so. At least now we'll be here for when Emily gets home."

"That's true."

There was a pause, and Joe shifted at the awkward silence. Their relationship was so new, volatile, and weird, he wasn't sure what to call it. A memory of Tai making a sniping remark about being in the friendzone came to light. Was he in the so-called 'friendzone?' He wasn't even sure what he wanted their relationship to turn into.

Joe cleared his throat. "Do you want something to drink?" he asked, opening the refrigerator.

She asked for a beer, but Joe had none, so he brought her a diet soda instead. As he handed it to her, he realized it was the unhealthiest beverage he had to drink. He'd never thought of himself as a health freak, but perhaps after spending so much time doing homework with Izzy, who seemed to eat nothing but apples and drink water, he was bordering on someone health-conscious. Add that to his organizational skills and he was almost OCD, he thought sullenly.

Joe sat on the couch next to her. As she sipped her soda, Joe noticed that she was absorbed in her phone, texting and scrolling. Joe brought out his digivice to find that it had once again become his smart phone, however in the corner of the screen he could see the symbol for the Spirit of Water, the little trident. A light blinked next to it, indicating that he was able to travel back to the digital world if he wanted. He smiled to himself. He couldn't wait to become Depthmon again.

He glanced over at Mimi. For once, her makeup seemed a bit off and her hair stuck up strangely, but she wasn't fussing about it. "Who are you talking to?" he asked curiously.

"Ah…James," she said, as though she had to think a moment to remember his name.

A surly feeling knotted in his stomach. "That guy who…grabbed you? You're still talking to him?" He couldn't forget Mimi's face when she had arrived one day to take care of Emily. Her normally cheery expression was twisted with anger and as soon as Emily was out of earshot, she had vented about the guy who had grabbed her ass during a party and tried to make out with her.

Mimi shrugged. "He's not so bad."

Joe sat there, silently seething. How could she be so naïve as to get back together with someone who treated her so badly? It wasn't the first time either – Joe very clearly remembered the guy who had cheated on her. He had thought that, after breaking up with that guy, Mimi would give dating a break for a while, but she was back the next day talking about the new guy she had met. Joe grit his teeth. At some point he hoped Mimi would find a guy who respected her. Until then, he'd be there for her when things inevitably went south.

Mimi sighed and pocketed her phone. "What do you think about all this?" she asked. Her eyeliner was smudged into the crease of her eyelid.

"About – what, the digital world?"

"Uh huh."  
Joe looked down at his phone where the little trident symbol shone next to his incoming texts. Some of the others had contacted him, either letting him know they arrived safely or asking if he was somewhere safe. "I don't know. I guess it's…interesting, being able to become a digimon now."

Mimi rolled her eyes, a smile on her face. "You sound like Izzy. You realize we're going to have to like…fight now, though, right?"

He nodded. He recalled his fight with Yasyamon, which had almost ended badly for him. "It's weird to think about, but its way easier with the digimon's instincts to guide you. I mean, you did great as Sakuyamon. I was afraid you'd be scared about becoming a digimon, but you handled yourself really well."

She shrugged, her expression thoughtful. "I don't know. I guess I know what you mean – I was just following her instincts, and she wanted to protect you guys, so that's what I did." She shook her head, her eyes closed. "It's just…it's going to get worse, Joe. There will be times when one of us gets hurt bad, or we're outnumbered, or something goes wrong. Our partners aren't here to help us anymore. It's all up to us. It's really…scary."

Joe swallowed. He had thought of this, of course, but unlike his past self, he wasn't keen on voicing everything that popped into his head anymore. Sometimes it was better for the sake of the group to keep negative thoughts silent. "I know it is," he said, trying to put faith into his words. "But as soon as we find beast spirits, we'll stand a better chance. Wizardmon is supposed to take us up to Light Sector as soon as Sora's better. We'll find all our beast spirits and take the Shades on."

Mimi looked away. Joe knew that they had no way of knowing if any of them would be able to control the beast spirits once they found them, nor if the Shades' beast spirits would be comparable in strength. He tried not to let his frustration show. She needed him to be stronger. "I just think maybe we should walk away from this one," she mumbled.

"We can't, Mimi," he said. "Something happens to us when the Shades become stronger. We can't risk letting that get out of hand. And our partners are out there somewhere. What if the Shades get a hold of them?" His heart clenched at the thought of Gomamon in Crucimon's clutches.

"And what about Emily?" she asked. Her reddish-brown eyes met his. Joe glanced away, an unpleasant feeling settling in his stomach. "You're not going to be there all the time to take care of her."

His jaw clenched and his expression became pained. She had found his weakness, as he knew she would. What _would_ he do about Emily? At least he had refrained from taking summer classes for once, so he could work his job and take care of her, but now he had the digital world mess to pay attention to. "I…don't know," he said slowly. "I guess I'm going to…tell her what's going on. She deserves to know why I won't be here all the time."

Mimi nodded. "She may need someone else to take care of her if you can't get home one day." Her voice broke, and Joe pretended not to notice. His chest constricted at the thought of her being forced to stay with his father. "Look, she can stay with my parents. They don't live too far away."

He sent her a grateful glance. "Thanks, Mimi. I guess I'll tell her that if I don't come back after a day, she'll go to them. She can ask them to pick her up or something. She's smart, she can figure it out." But his heart pounded from worry, not unlike it had done during their first days in the digital world years ago, however this time it wasn't his own safety he was worried about.

"She'll be fine," said Mimi. She gave him a small smile, and he forced himself to look away. She had no way of knowing that.

The two of them watched TV together until his niece returned from school.

* * *

Aww..I like Joe lol. But yay a better-written chapter! :D

Next time: we see what Izzy's dealing with in his life, we see some Tai anger, and we return to the digital world in time for plotlines to explode in their faces.


	5. Distrust

Wow it's been a while! Sorry guys! School & life got in the way :( here's an extra long chapter taking place mostly in the real world. Lots of Izzy narrating, and a little TK. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

Izzy arrived at his father's house far later than he had expected him. As he parked his Honda and stepped out of the car, apprehension prickled at the back of his mind. He knew his father would be angry he was late, and he couldn't even tell him the reason why. He wasn't sure if he'd even believe that Izzy had been called back to the digital world.

Through the lobby, he took the elevator up four floors. He checked his phone one last time. Upon arriving home, his phone had alerted him to several missed calls he had received while in the digital world. His friends had texted him to ask if he was okay, but he hadn't had time to respond in his haste to get out the door. He took the time in the elevator to answer some of them, glancing periodically at the lightning bolt symbol in the corner of his smart phone.

As the elevator came to a stop, the familiar dizziness overcame his head and he stepped out. He had never had much of a tolerance for elevators. The hallway before him gave way in two different directions, doors spread out evenly on the walls. Pocketing his phone, Izzy walked along the bland carpet until he reached the fourth door from the elevator. Unlike the other apartments, there were no decorations placed outside, only a number resting on the door. He remembered when there were flowers on either side of it and their last name carved into a piece of wood and hanging from a pin. Izzy knocked. His heart began to pound.

There was a pause as Izzy waited, his veins running cold with anxiety. Then someone stomped to the door and threw it open, and Izzy tried hard not to falter at the expression on the man's face.

His father held the door with one hand and a beer in the other. He wore a shabby old t-shirt and even shabbier holey, baggy pajama pants. Izzy remembered when he would wear a dress shirt and slacks every day. He gazed down at Izzy, fury clearly building behind his round glasses, his thin mouth scrunched to the side as though he was about to start yelling. When he spoke, Izzy could smell the alcohol on his breath.

"Where the hell have you been?" he barked. "You were supposed to be here hours ago."

Izzy swallowed. "I overslept," he lied. He almost went with the truth; anything to get those judgmental, beady eyes to soften. As time went on, it seemed, the angrier his adoptive father became.

His father grit his teeth. The knuckles clutching the beer turned white and he drew back from Izzy, as if his poor judgment was contagious. He grunted and disappeared into the apartment. Izzy followed, heart pounding and his hands in his pockets.

Izzy had not grown up here. The little house he had shared with his parents as a child had been sold as soon as he had been old enough to live on his own. His father had helped him find his apartment, get a job, and prepare him for an independent life, while his parents moved into this small but "adorable" apartment, as his mother had called it. He remembered, on his first few visits to his parents' new place, her flitting around the apartment, decorating and rearranging with her own personal touch until it was bright and welcoming. She had shown him around, proudly asking for his opinion on her choice of drapery or flowers.

Now, however, the flowers had wilted, and most of the decorations had been put away. Hollowness seemed to have drilled its way through Izzy's chest as he followed his father past the kitchen and into the dark living room. The curtains were drawn, the plants were dying, and empty beer cans littered the floor beside the couch. Izzy withheld a sigh as he sat in the armchair in front of the coffee table where documents upon documents lay. His father's drinking had not slowed as he had hoped. At the same time, he wasn't really surprised. He looked down at the papers before him, noting information about insurance or medical bills. His head began to throb.

His father sneered at him as he selected a pile. "Get to work," he said, before taking another swig of beer.

Izzy nodded silently. The situation made him want to run out the door, or at least ask his father for a can of his own beer. He had never drunk before, however, and had no idea of his tolerance. He picked up a pen, his phone, and a stack of papers, and set to work. The tension never left his slight frame.

His mind wandered freely as he worked. It stopped periodically on topics like programming or school, and lingered for the majority of the time on his impending adventures in the digital world and what it had been like to be a digimon for the first time. But eventually he came to a topic he had been trying to avoid, to put in the back of his mind until he was ready to contemplate it again. He had always known that his real parents had been brilliant, kind people, but he of course didn't know them personally, nor if they were anything like him besides their keen intelligence. In the wake of the recent tragedy, he had thought of them even less. He remembered having once asked his adoptive father about his real parents' nationalities. His father had been nothing exotic but his mother was French, and they had met at some sort of science convention in Germany. Izzy clenched his teeth, turning over papers without really reading them. He wished he had thought to ask more.

* * *

TK found his brother parked outside his apartment complex, sitting in the front seat of his Subaru and apparently sleeping. The younger man scowled, an expression he rarely wore. Since arriving home from the digital world, Patamon was suddenly the furthest thing from his mind. Matt needed someone to talk some sense into him, and TK, wearing his favorite fuzzy sweatpants and slippers, had located him at last. He parked his car behind his brother and stepped out into the darkness of the late night. He knew he should not have been up this late, given that they had to return to the digital world the next day, but the call he had received had been too grave to ignore.

He approached his brother's car and raised his knuckles to knock on the window, but hesitated. Matt slept peacefully inside with the front seat reclined. His head slouched to one side and he clutched his cell phone in one hand. TK spared a look at the back seat. Clothes and hygiene supplies had been thrown inside. On the floor were two empty glass bottles. He frowned and knocked on the window closest to Matt's face.

His brother jerked awake, glanced to the window, and jumped at the sight of him. TK would have thought the situation was funny had Matt's expression not been so livid as he rolled down the window. It reminded TK of a younger, less controlled Matt, when he would get angry with TK for tiny mistakes.

"What the hell are you doing?" Matt demanded. He ran a hand through his mussed hair, which stuck up in the back somewhat from his sleeping position. Seeing him this close, TK noticed for the first time the bags underneath his eyes, and his usual detached, cool expression had disappeared with his annoyance. The younger of the two swallowed. He hated seeing Matt this upset, especially when it was his fault for waking him.

TK forced himself not to falter. "I got a call from one of your bandmates saying you guys had a fight. Did you get kicked out?"

Matt's scowl became more pronounced, and TK's insides twisted uneasily. "They _called_ you?" he said. His head fell back against the seat. "Great."

TK was beginning to feel awkward standing outside his window, not to mention cold, so he walked around the car and sat in the passenger's side. A stale aroma of dirty clothes reached his nostrils. Matt didn't even seem to have noticed TK's change of location; he had his eyes closed, and looked like he wanted nothing more than to sleep. "What's going on?"

His brother opened his eyes and waved a dismissive hand. "It's not a big deal. I missed a gig while I was in the digital world and I couldn't think of a good lie for missing it. They got pretty pissed at me. I can't really blame them."

Something in Matt's mannerisms told TK he wasn't telling the whole truth. "Is that all?" he said quietly, watching his brother closely.

Matt sighed and sent him an exasperated glance before turning his icy eyes back to the dark windshield. "And I didn't have rent for this month, all right? I didn't have it last month either. I can't believe they called you, though."

"They said you ran out of the apartment with a bottle of whiskey and headed to your car," said TK.

Matt let out a forced laugh, somewhat like a bark. "I guess they thought I was going to drive drunk to a hotel. Guess they didn't realize I didn't even have the money for that."

TK looked away. Matt must have been pretty drunk to be putting himself down like he was. His mind ran through solutions to his brother's residence issues, trying to find the best answer.

"Why don't you stay with me and Mom for a night? We have that extra bedroom."

Matt snorted. "I haven't seen Mom since she got engaged to that guy. That was months ago. I don't think she'd like to have me in her house, even for a night."

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind." TK narrowed his eyes. He hadn't heard about Matt and their mother having any sort of argument, but now wasn't the time to ask about it. Matt only grunted, and TK felt his patience wearing thin. "So what? You're just going to stay out here all night?"

"Why not? My car's pretty comfortable. I was sleeping great until you showed up."

TK grinned. Despite the situation, he couldn't help but appreciate exasperated humor. An idea struck him and he sat up a little straighter. "Hey – why don't you go back to the digital world?" Matt turned his head toward him, still resting lazily on the seat. "I'm serious. Sora's there, she's all alone, and she's hurt. It would be a good time for you to keep her company and mend your relationship with her."

Matt's scowl returned in an instant, and he slammed his forearm on the seat. "I don't want to talk to her! Especially not now when I'm practically homeless. And besides," he said, his voice returning to normal, "Tai asked us to gather at Kari's house before we go back tomorrow. He told everybody in a text today."

"He did?" TK pulled out his phone to find a text there, five hours old. "Oh. I guess I got distracted by that call and forgot to check my phone."

"You forget a lot of things," Matt sighed. "And don't talk to me about relationships. What the hell happened with you and Kari? Last I heard, you guys broke up for weird reasons."

TK's heart clenched, but he forced his expression to remain neutral. His temper suddenly rose at Matt's words and his voice became painfully toneless. "We did break up, but we're friends now. You and Sora didn't break up, but you're treating her like it's about to happen at any moment. Either make it better or break it off, but don't keep dragging her along." He wondered for a moment if Matt was avoiding her because he had lost control of his spirit so badly, but TK remembered that his brother hadn't even written her while she was overseas.

Matt's teeth locked together with a snap, and his face looked dangerous, his eyebrows pulled together and his blue eyes wide. Then he hesitated, calming himself, and TK knew he knew he was right. "I'll go to the digital world," he mumbled, avoiding his brother's eye.

"Good," said TK. His tone was uncharacteristically flat. "But sober up first. And make some progress. She can't disappear to Korea this time, so you've got no excuse."

Matt watched him as he climbed out of the car, his eyes glassy and expression drawn. TK hoped he hadn't been too hard on him, but at the same time, he hated the way his brother was treating Sora. She deserved better. Matt needed to hear it. "Uh huh." The dismissive tone had TK gritting his teeth, but at least he had agreed to visit Sora.

"I'll see you tomorrow in the digital world," said TK, and he left without another word. On the drive home and when he climbed into bed at home, exhausted, he wondered if Matt would actually heed his advice or continue to protect his pride. Well, TK thought as he drifted off, at least I got him to talk to her. His thoughts wandered to Kari and the day they had broken up. She had said she had no idea what she wanted. I suppose I don't either, he thought, and fell asleep.

The next day, TK happily slept in and later met up with Kari in their favorite park. She had brought her math homework and he a book to read, and they sat underneath a tree on a shaded bench as children played around the grass, enjoying the last month of summer. TK looked at the book without really reading it, his thoughts wandering to the conversation with his brother the night before. He had sent Matt a text that morning which had received no response, so either he wasn't speaking to him or he was in the digital world.

TK turned his head to look at the girl beside him, only a few months younger, and he was painfully reminded of the quip Matt had made regarding _their_ relationship. _You broke up for weird reasons_… He was right, of course. One day Kari had admitted to him that she wasn't sure if being with him was the right choice, and she asked to just be friends. He gave her the space she wanted, but he never really understood what had gone wrong between them. He also certainly missed her company. It had always been nice having her as a best friend, but when they were dating he had felt as though it was destined to happen, somewhat like the way they had become chosen. Now that they had broken up, he missed her more than he had admitted to her.

He placed a bookmark inside his book and closed it, scooting a bit closer to her. Her attention was focused on a particularly difficult math problem, and he had heard her muttering to herself in frustration. "Kari?" he began, and when she looked at him, her annoyance was evident in her drawn eyebrows. "I…look, I know you said that you don't want to talk about our break up, but…I still don't really understand why it happened."

As he expected, she withdrew herself from him, turning her body almost in the opposite direction on the bench as she replied. "I just…don't feel right about it," she said, and her tone suggested that she was trying to be nice regarding the topic of the conversation, as such was her nature, but it was somewhat forced. "I'm sorry, TK. I don't know what to tell you."

A soccer ball bounced by and children hurried after it, but he paid no attention. "But there has to be a better reason why we can't be…"

"I said I don't know what I want," she said, and she looked again to her notebook and wrinkled her nose.

TK sighed. He knew he wasn't going to get much further with her. "Do you want help with that?" he asked, trying not to let his disappointment show.

"Oh, no, that's fine. I'm meeting Izzy later, he said he would help me with my stupid trig."

"You're meeting _Izzy?_" He couldn't keep the surprise out of his voice. TK knew Izzy was a genius and could probably help with any math Kari needed, but he had never heard of the two of them being even remotely close. And of course, it hurt that she trusted Izzy's judgment more than his.

She sent him a glance. "Uh, yeah. He's taken every math offered, I think he can help with this. Plus, we go to the same college. Maybe I can get a ride home from him and I won't have to take the bus." Kari glanced at her watch, her hair falling lightly into her eyes. "Actually, I need to catch the bus pretty soon. I've got a class. Sorry about that."

"No problem," TK heard himself say.

She stood, swinging her bag over her shoulder. TK noticed, not for the first time, that she had grown her hair out. He missed it being shorter. "I'll see you later, okay? At the meeting."

He smiled, the expression contrasting with his body language. "Of course. See you then."

* * *

Work had been a mess of drinks and harried, busy people, and Izzy had not failed to arrive at class smelling of coffee. He took a seat at a computer desk near the front of the classroom and only half-listened as his professor lectured. He experimented with his own program on the computer, thinking about the digital world and his spirit, and the appointment he had later with Kari. Izzy had already worked with the current topic the professor had chosen for the day, so he didn't feel too bad about his inattention. Furthermore, he'd been praised on his intuition regarding his last test, and the professor had offhandedly mentioned that there was not a lot left he could teach Izzy. He'd heard it before, there was still a sense of pride when he was praised regarding the few things he knew he excelled at. It helped distract him from things he did not want to think about.

When class ended, a few of his classmates approached him, asking questions about the homework or the lecture. Izzy answered the best he could, giving them each concise, framework answers. They looked a little put off at his detached responses, but he didn't think much of it. He was used to classmates prodding him for information – it was one of the reasons he preferred to keep his intellect a secret and refrain from answering questions in class. He still had some time before he was supposed to meet up with Kari, so he headed to the computer lab, plugged in his flash drive, and set to work again with his program.

He swiveled the office chair very slightly as he worked, absently rotating it left and right by degrees. He was a little nervous about meeting Kari; he had never spent a significant amount of time with her in the past, and he hoped she wouldn't be intimidated by his intellect like his classmates. He knew she was a good student however; she had worked with her for a while in the past, answering a few questions she had regarding her pre-calculus class before a test. He had been impressed with her grasp of the subject, despite her insistence that she was terrible at math. Izzy had tutored a few students who expected him to do all the work, but Kari had at least done her research first and attempted the problem before going to him for help. Apparently her test had gone well, because she had texted him last night for help once again.

As he typed somewhat robotically, his mind floated over to the Shades and the best way to deal with them. He honestly was not sure what to do about beings that were evil manifestations of himself and his friends – it was somewhat scary to think about, and probably could not be solved through logic and reason because of the conflicting emotions involved. He was sure that Tai was ready to attack at once, even though they had not yet collected a single beast spirit. Such an approach could only lead to disaster given they knew almost nothing about the seven Shades.

He heard footsteps behind him and didn't think much of it until someone approached him, leaned against his desk and exclaiming loudly, "Hey Izzy!" He jumped and his knee slammed into the top of the desk, and the girl laughed at his expense. Rubbing his knee, he looked up into Kari's light brown eyes. She had pinned her long brunette hair back and wore a trenchcoat.

Looking at her bright, happy face despite the looming danger in the digital world, he found it impossible to be annoyed. There was something about Kari that erased negative emotions. "Um, hi Kari," he said, and he couldn't help a small smile.

She giggled. "I'm sorry I scared you, but I couldn't resist," she said. "I just got done with class and I kind of figured you'd be here. Do you want to start on that math now? We could get lunch too. I'm hungry."

She fired off her statements and questions as though there was nothing currently bringing her down, and he had to admire her for it. He wished he had her optimism sometimes. "Sure, sounds good."

Kari beamed and he collected his things and followed her to the cafeteria. At the noisy, crowded deli, she lightly teased him for buying a piece of fruit while she ordered a large sandwich and a drink to go with it. They sat together at a table beside a window, away from the majority of the noise and students. Other students had filled most of the tables and benches while chatting, eating, or studying.

Izzy was grateful for her choice of seating and watched her bring out her paper and textbook. He bounced his leg absently, drumming his fingers on the edge of his chair. "What unit are you in now?" he asked.

"Law of sines and cosines," she said, and she looked up at him, her brows furrowed and her eyes wide. Izzy assumed she was concerned about the difficulty of the subject.

He glanced at the numbers marked in her notebook and pulled the textbook closer to him, finding the first problem assigned. "All right, I remember how to do that."

She seemed to deflate, following his movements as he picked up a pencil. "Oh, good. Thanks Izzy. I hope you'll still want to talk to me, though, after I prove how useless I am at this stuff."

"I'm sure you're not useless," he said, and she smiled. He drew a triangle and labeled the sides and angles as she munched on her sandwich, watching attentively.

She was as good a student as she was the last time he had helped her, carefully taking notes and trying it herself. She asked good, intelligent questions, ones that the students Izzy had tutored for a short time would never have thought to ask, and she laughed at herself when she made a silly error. He realized he was having fun, and felt more at ease than he had in days. After at least twenty minutes of studying, Kari leaned back in her seat and sipped at her drink.

She pulled the cup away from her mouth as Izzy reviewed her notes. "Thanks, Izzy. You're a lifesaver. This is the only reason we're hanging out, though. I only use you for your brain."

Izzy grinned, not minding the teasing. "That's all right."

He tried to keep Kari focused on one of the last problems, but it was clear she was getting tired of all the math. She twirled her pencil absently and gazed out of the large window, where construction was taking place. "This is some crazy stuff we're going to have to deal with," she said, her tone serious for the first time.

"It is," he agreed. He placed down his pencil. "I don't know what we're going to do about the Shades."

"We almost didn't get out of there," she said. "When that explosion went off, and Sora got hurt… Matt was so close to using his spirit again, but he didn't. I felt pretty useless too. At least you got your spirit, and it's easy to control."

Izzy swallowed, unsure of how to respond. As a digimon, the experience had not seemed as threatening. Stingmon had taken each event in stride and had offered solutions right away. He had no idea how he would have reacted had he been out of form. It really must have been terrifying for her and Matt, but he didn't know how to voice his empathy.

Kari pulled out her cell phone and unlocked it. He could see the symbol for her spirit in the corner of the screen, a thin crescent moon. "Wizardmon said my spirit got corrupted," she said. She raised her eyes to meet his. "What do you think that means?"

Izzy hesitated a moment, considering his answer. "Well, when a file becomes corrupted, it is usually because of a defect or a bug. Whatever the Shades did to it, it may be unusable now."

Her head declined, and shoulders seemed to slump. "Oh…well that sucks. So I might not get to use it at all?" She scrunched up her face, not waiting for an answer. "I'm going to at least try to evolve into it once. I hope nothing bad happens, though."

Izzy's mind worked for something to say. Did she say that because she was as curious about her spirit as he was, or because she was concerned she wouldn't get to help the rest of them fight? He tried to make sense of it, to understand, but he was so lacking in social skills he wasn't sure what she intended. That, and he didn't know her well enough. Frustration worked its way into his expression and he grimaced. Should he tell her to try her spirit anyway, just to be sure, or to refrain from using it out of concern for her safety?

He swallowed. "If you're going to use it, at least make sure you're with the rest of us. We can help you regain control if needed." He suddenly felt rather hot around the collar. Why was it so hard to express what he wanted to say? "Like when Matt lost control."

Kari's grin returned. "Oh, you're going to shock me too?" she said, and laughed. He couldn't believe how at ease she was around him, despite his awkwardness.

Izzy forced a smile too, remembering how he had used Stingmon's electric abilities on Matt. "Um…probably not," he said. "Hopefully it doesn't come to that."

"Hopefully," she agreed, shaking her head as though the proposed situation was ridiculous. Izzy had no idea what he would do if Kari did lose control of her spirit and attacked them. His mother had made sure he respected women, and the thought of attacking Kari, even out of self-defense, seemed ridiculous. She checked the time on her phone. "Anyway, it's getting about time for that meeting at my place. I, uh, guess I should get on the bus." She looked up at him, a strange expression on her face. It was almost pitiful, and something twisted in Izzy's chest.

He stared at her for a moment before realizing what she wanted. He almost laughed. "Do you want a ride?" he said, unable to keep the smile off of his face.

Kari sheepishly nodded with an embarrassed grin and began packing away her things. "That would be awesome," she said without meeting his gaze, as though offering a ride had been too generous on his part. Izzy shook his head. Strange girl. "Should we leave now?"

Izzy nodded and they made their way out of the main building of their campus and to the parking lot. As he led her to his car, he was suddenly very grateful he kept it clean and threw away his food after he was done with it. He had a tendency to drive while eating to save time. He unlocked the car and they climbed in. As soon as he fired up the engine, Kari began messing with the radio almost immediately.

She clicked through the stations, listening for half a second, before moving on to the next one. Izzy watched this out of the corner of his eye with a smile on his face, driving out of the campus and onto the road. Had it been anyone else, he would have found it rude. He didn't listen to the radio often, as he had his own thoughts to pay attention to, but his stations were carefully organized when he felt like listening to music. Kari had paid no attention to the old rock music on the default station.

At last, she gasped upon finding a desirable song, and leaned back in her seat happily. "Oooh, I love this song!" And with that, she was singing for the majority of the trip. Izzy didn't mind; he found her rather thoughtless capture of his radio somewhat amusing. When the song was over, after apparently realizing what she was doing, she quickly flipped through the stations in the opposite direction, asking him what station he'd had it on.

"Don't worry about it," he told her, unable to keep the laughter out of his voice.

She slumped back, embarrassed. "Uh, turn here," she said, upon realizing they were in her neighborhood. Izzy was grateful; he had only been to Kari's house once, and that was only because he had to drop her and Tai off at their apartment, back when Tai still lived with her, after the gathering between the eight chosen. That had been years ago, and Izzy only vaguely remembered what the apartment looked like. Kari turned to him, her expression distant. "Did you notice how Tai acted when he used his spirit?" she said. Her voice was as somber as it had been when they had been talking about her corrupted spirit.

Izzy thought back to Tai, newly evolved and blazing fire, smoke wafting from the vents on his wrists and itching for a fight. "He was…quite violent," he said.

"He was almost as out of control as Matt. I've never seen a digimon wear such a bloodthirsty expression." She shivered. "It was pretty scary."  
"I think it was the digimon making him act like that." The car came to a stop in front of Kari's apartment complex.

She shook her head, her eyes closed. "I'm not so sure…I mean, the way you guys described it to me, the digimon's instincts were there, but controllable. It seemed to me that Tai just didn't even try to control it."

He remembered how calmly Stingmon had instructed him during the fights and nodded. "His spirit seemed different than the rest of ours. When I looked it up on my digivice, it said it was a legendary warrior."

"Well, I hope all legendary warriors aren't as crazy as the thing Tai became." She picked up her bags from the floor. "You ready?"

Izzy grabbed the small backpack he had prepared before leaving his house that morning. Since he was pretty sure he'd be spending a few days in the digital world, he packed a few essentials and non-perishable foods. Kari's apartment was just off of the main, busy street, and a few complexes in. Izzy noticed Tai's van parked underneath the beige carport. He had probably transported Matt, Joe, Mimi, and TK here himself; the fewer cars here, the less suspicious it would look.

He let Kari lead him to her door. She happily crunched fallen leaves under her sandals as she walked, and the low sun cast long shadows across the pavement. Once they had reached the covered walkway, Kari's apartment was the first door available. As she unlocked the door, humming to herself, Izzy observed the dirty walkways and the stairs, littered with trash and cigarette butts, remembering the last time he had been here. He had never been inside Kari's apartment before.

The door opened suddenly and Kari laughed at herself. "Oh, it's unlocked," she said. She stepped inside and held the door open for him as he followed her. Izzy registered white walls, and an open archway to his left leading into the kitchen. The windows that Izzy could see were wide open and let in cheerful streams of light. He could hear the television turned up loudly.

At once, Tai walked around the half-wall of the kitchen to see who had entered. "There you are Kari," he said, and his face fell upon meeting Izzy's eyes. "Did you guys come together?" Izzy didn't like the look on Tai's face at all. It was as though he had smelled something rather unpleasant.

"Yep, we go to the same campus, so I thought it would be easier," said Kari. She rattled off her explanation as though her brother were not acting strangely. Izzy swallowed awkwardly and tried to understand the source of Tai's suspicion.

"You couldn't take the bus?" Tai's eyes had narrowed and his hands were stuffed in his pockets. Someone in the room behind him made an uncomfortable noise.

"Is everyone here?" Kari pushed past Tai, ignoring him completely, and joined the others in the adjacent room.

Tai sent Izzy the darkest look he had ever seen. His brown eyes had hardened to a cold, removed expression. Izzy found himself very uncomfortable, remembering that Tai had a short temper and was quick to resort to violence. He also felt oddly defensive. He couldn't think of anything he had done wrong. Tai slouched over to him, ignoring the chatter that was going on in the living room. Izzy swallowed. He wished one of the others would come and see what had become of them.

The older man seemed to tower over him. "Kari mentioned that you're helping her with homework."

Izzy found that his normal, detached expression was easy to maintain, even when an apparently angry Tai was threatening him. "Yes, I've been helping her."

"I don't like the way she's been talking about you. She went on and on about how smart you are and how much you helped her."

Though he partially knew where Taichi was going with this, some part of him couldn't help feeling flattered Kari had mentioned him in such high esteem.

"You don't hear a girl talk like that about a guy when she has a boyfriend, Izzy."

"It was harmless. She asked _me_ to help her." Frustration seeped its way into his voice.

Tai's jaw clenched and his eyes remained hard. "Look…" He sent an awkward glance backward, as though afraid of being overheard. Izzy felt the muscles in his face tightening. "I don't want you two getting together."

"We're not going to." The implication was ridiculous; the two of them had never had any chemistry whatsoever. Was this really brought on just because Izzy had given Kari a ride home?

"TK's good for her. You aren't."

Something cold enclosed Izzy's heart. Tai was his oldest friend. He had met him in the first grade when Izzy was a small, shy boy with no friends and an already heightened IQ. Once Tai had expressed an interest in becoming friends, Izzy had followed him around like a puppy, unwilling to let the new friendship go to waste. How had he let this relationship deteriorate like this? When had Tai stopped trusting him?

Izzy knew he had to let the situation diffuse, or else he risked a punch to the face. Ignoring the pounding of his heart and the icy dread flowing through his veins, he gestured toward the others. "All right. Fine. Should we get on with this meeting?" He looked up at Tai, trying not to let the hurt show in his face.

Tai turned and joined the others without a word. Izzy quickly followed him in an effort to conceal that something was wrong between them. He found Joe, Mimi, Kari, and TK sitting in Kari's cozy living room, around plush blue couches and a small TV. She had decorated the small space with bright, cheery decorations; portraits of herself smiling with friends and family, light blue curtains, and potted plants. His friends were wearing outdoorsy-type clothing, fitting for a group who was about to venture into another world.

TK and Kari were chatting happily, and Tai had taken a seat in the soft armchair opposite them, looking quite surly. Izzy sat beside Joe, who was sitting rather close to Mimi. His friend sent him a worried look. Izzy hoped he didn't look as pained as he felt.

"All right, should we start this?" Tai's expression had softened somewhat as he looked around the group.

"When are we leaving for the digital world?" asked Joe. Izzy noticed the bag at his feet, bigger than the one Izzy had brought.

Tai checked the time on his phone. "Pretty soon. I guess we'll make it brief, since Matt's not here." His scowl returned, almost with the intensity he had given Izzy.

Matt must have joined Sora in the digital world. He felt a little better about leaving her there alone, but with the Shades running around, he wasn't sure if Wizardmon and Matt's protection would be enough.

The others focused their attention on Tai as he began to speak. He had always been their leader, and though Izzy sometimes didn't agree with the decision of placing him in charge, they always seemed to defer to him by default. "Look, we have eight spirits. Maybe seven, if one doesn't work right." He sent Kari a glance. The younger girl scrunched up her nose. "There are seven Shades. We were unbelievably powerful when we first evolved. I really think that if we go after them, and attack together, relentlessly, they won't have a chance against us."

TK and Kari glanced at one another. Mimi stared at Tai as though he was crazy. "That's your plan?" she burst out. Izzy remained silent, certain that Tai would no longer listen to what he had to say.

"Yes! We only had to run last time because Sora was hurt. How will the Shades do against all of us at our full strength?"

"We don't know anything about them. And Wizardmon said that some of them might have beast spirits already," said Joe. Izzy realized grimly that Tai rarely listened to Joe's advice either. "We have none. We won't stand a chance."

"I'm not afraid of beast spirits," Tai said, his voice condescending. Joe leaned back in his seat. Tai had made it perfectly clear that he didn't care what he had to say.

TK shook his head. "It's not a question of whether or not you're afraid of them. They are vastly more powerful than us."

"Some of us might get hurt, Tai," Kari chimed in. "We should at least learn to manage our spirits better before we rush into a plan like this." The others nodded in agreement. "What do you think, Izzy?"

Izzy sent her a quick glance, surprised at having been put on the spot. Though Kari didn't know it, she was endangering him by associating the two of them together. He couldn't look at Tai's face, but he knew what his answer would be, despite the looming threat of Tai's anger. "We need to find beast spirits first," he said. "There is no sense in endangering ourselves by recklessly attacking the Shades." Though he would never admit it, the small group of people there were incredibly important to him. He wasn't going to let Tai's carelessness jeopardize any of their lives.

The others nodded. Izzy dared glance in Tai's direction. The bearer of the crest of courage had visibly tightened his jaw again, and he could see the veins in Tai's neck popping out. He sent Izzy another dark look. Izzy swallowed and looked away. "Fine. I guess we'll go to the digital world now. We'll see what Matt says."

"You know what he'll say," said TK. The normally cheerful, airy younger man had his eyebrows pulled together and his voice drawn. "And Sora would agree with him too."

Izzy knew Tai was very fond of TK, but the brunette clearly wasn't very happy with him now. His lips pulled back, almost in a snarl, and he reached for his phone. "Ugh, whatever. Let's just get there, see how Sora's doing, and I guess we'll look for beast spirits."

"Good," Izzy heard Mimi murmur. She probably wasn't looking forward to all the fighting sure to come. Joe patted her back, looking completely at ease with the gesture, and sent Izzy another questioning look. He had probably, and correctly, guessed that Izzy had been the one to set Tai off.

His expression set, Tai prodded his spirit's symbol on his phone without asking if the rest of them were ready. Light engulfed Izzy's vision and an unpleasant, swooping sensation seemed to dislodge him from the world. He no longer could sense his friends beside him as gravity seemed to have been removed, and he floated backward, noting tiny lines of data wafting past his eyes. He was unprepared for solid ground beneath him and as soon as the blinding light faded, he landed painfully beside Joe on a stone floor. Izzy registered great tapestries and huge windows and realized they were back at the mansion.

"Ow." Joe stood quickly and pulled Izzy to his feet. Mimi stood beside them, brushing off her cut-off pants. She had not neglected to dress well, even on the day they were returning. Kari was already examining her black digivice as TK glanced around the spacious mansion, searching for his brother.

Tai had disappeared already, brushing past them and entering the wooden door where Sora had rested for the night. Izzy sighed inwardly. Was Tai really going to act like a child and ignore them because they had disagreed with his plan? Izzy remembered the headstrong boy who had realized that they needed to grow up before facing the last of the evils in the digital world. Where was that determined leader now?

The five of them recovered from their landing and followed Tai into Sora's room. She was lying on a grand, Victorian-style bed with four-poster drapes and dark wood. The room itself was just as spectacular; Izzy took in long, stained glass windows, a beautiful vanity table, and pictures framed in gold. This mansion's data had clearly drawn inspiration from old England, or something like it.

Sora's eyes widened when they entered, and she sat up quickly. She was wearing a long t-shirt, but Izzy had seen the bandages beneath it before the shirt fell across her stomach. Matt sat in an armchair beside her, a tray of food on his lap. It had barely been touched.

"Hey, Sora," said Tai. His voice had been drawn back to a gentleness normally reserved for comfort in a time of trouble. "How are you doing?"

"Um, I'm okay," she said. Izzy could see a dullness to her eyes, and her arm was shaking from the effort of sitting up. She gingerly lowered herself against the pillows.

Tai looked to Matt. "She keeps getting weaker," said the blond. "Last night she was so tired she didn't know who I was, and today she's having trouble walking." Tai swallowed, clenching his digivice.

Sora scowled. "Look, I'm not that fragile," she grumbled. The military seemed to have given her a sense of pride when it came to her well-being. She must have hated them all being there, looking at her in the bed, too weak to move.

Wizardmon entered the room from an adjacent door. He held his spiked staff firmly as he walked. "We may need to go into the village and get some medicine," he said. "The blast from the corrupted digimon seemed to have given her a virus."

Tai nodded. "All right, where's this village?"

"It's just a Trailmon ride away." He turned toward the five of them, standing awkwardly by the door. "You go and collect the medicine, but be weary; Shades may be running around, especially in the daylight, looking for more digimon to corrupt. They will be all too happy to collect your spirits."

Mimi bit her lip, glancing to Tai as though hoping he wouldn't accept this mission. He had already turned toward the door. "No problem. Ready guys?"

"I suppose," said Kari, sending Matt and Sora a worried look. "Will you guys be okay?"

"Don't worry about it." Matt nodded toward his blue digivice lying on the bed, and Izzy narrowed his eyes. Even if they were attacked, would he really spirit evolve? Izzy couldn't see a choice – it was either that or let the attackers destroy them. He had no doubt that Sora would at least try to evolve as well.

Joe had drawn his eyebrows, and he exchanged a look with Mimi. It was clear that neither of them were happy with splitting up their group and venturing out into a village they had never been to. Kari's eyes met Izzy's, worried and afraid for the members they were leaving behind. Izzy looked away, remembering Tai's words. He prayed that her spirit would be usable and wouldn't cause the distress that Matt's had. They followed Tai out of the door with a final good-bye to Sora and Matt.

* * *

Long chapter was long. I think this one was kind of boring lol, sorry about that. The next chapter should be soon! I've already started it.

Next time: Mimi gets some coaching regarding her spirit, some bad stuff happens, and we get to see Kari's spirit for the first time. And (maybe) we find out who the hell Tai was talking to when he got his spirit. Constructive criticism is always appreciated :) Thanks for reading!


	6. Darkness

This chapter has four people narrating, all for a short time, and seems to skip around. Hope that doesn't become too annoying. But get prepared for Kari's spirit!

* * *

Tai knew the others weren't happy with him. The ride to the village was somewhat awkward; only TK and Kari chatted while Mimi and Joe teased one another. Izzy sulked on the end seat, his hands folded in his lap and staring at the floor. _Serves him right, making a move on Kari_, Tai thought, giving the redhead a hostile glance that went unnoticed. He turned away from Izzy. His intellect and detached attitude just exhausted Tai sometimes. Tai watched the low sun slowly descend in the evening sky, the weather calm and pleasantly warm.

The village was bustling and populated with digimon of all levels and types. Tai recognized several digimon from their previous adventures: he saw a towering Monzaemon, looking both cute and threatening at the same time as a giant walking teddy bear; several rookie level digimon crowded around a tent where a scarecrow-type digimon was selling food; a Meramon walked past him and the temperature rose as though Tai were walking past a bonfire. It looked as though they were walking into a fair – some digimon were playing games, selling things, and doing other odd activities like predicting fortunes. A few of them gave the group funny looks, but didn't comment – they probably figured they were a new group of digimon or something.

Tai turned back toward his group and sighed. A pushy Centarumon was trying to get Mimi to sell some of her hair, and she didn't care for politeness when she refused. Joe quickly came to her defense and told the centaur-like digimon that she wasn't interested. What was up with those two? Tai wondered. Were they dating now? He wished they would stop the friendship thing and get it over with. It was obvious they liked one another.

As the Centarumon shuffled away, hooves flattening the grass, Tai drew nearer to the other five. "What the hell are we looking for again?" he asked. He had to raise his voice over the crowd of digimon.

Izzy tore his eyes away from an Ogremon's strange assortment of merchandise on display. "There's supposed to be a Swanmon who tends a medicinal store."

"That's right. Swanmon." Tai looked around the busy village as though the white, feathered digimon was nearby.

"Where should we look?" asked TK. He had his yellow digivice out and ready for any danger to pop out. Tai admired his vigilance; he should have been ready as well.

Tai opened his mouth but was interrupted when a Frigimon appeared at his side, turning the air around him icy cold. He shivered and stepped away from the snowy digimon as it loudly exclaimed, "Humans! Humans are here!"

Mimi giggled, but Kari nodded politely. "Yes, we are humans. It's nice to meet you."

"Humans are here to save us from the Shades!" The snowman digimon threw up its thick hands, its black eyes crinkling happily. "At last, someone to save us from corruption!" And with that, he disappeared into the crowd, shouting, "At last! Humans with the spirits of the guardians!"

There was a moment of silence in the group, save for Mimi's giggling. "Well, that was odd," said TK, enjoying the humor of the situation.

"Yeah…but uh, it is the digital world," Joe pointed out.

Tai shook his head, and began asking where they should look, but his sister cut him off.

"Mimi, that digimon there is wearing the symbol for the spirit of balance." Kari pointed to a robed digimon with a fox-like face some distance away. It was leaning over a cauldron, sitting on a wooden stool, and brewing with what looked like a paintbrush. Odd trinkets and potions stacked on bookshelves surrounded it. The other digimon walked by, ignoring the digimon completely.

Izzy turned to Mimi, who was regarding the digimon with interest. "I think it's the form below Sakuyamon. Maybe you can ask it some questions about your spirit."

Her eyes widened, but she crossed her arms as though another thought had struck her. "I don't know…it looks a little scary. What if it has no idea what I'm talking about?"

"I think the digimon here know that we're collecting spirits. It probably knows what the spirit of balance is." Izzy looked at Mimi, and Tai recognized the desire for information in his eyes. He wondered what part of this conversation he was not understanding.

"All right, all right. I'll ask her some questions. Come find me when you guys get the medicine." Mimi slipped through the crowd toward the digimon.

Impatience nagged Tai at the front of his brain; they were here on a mission, not to gather information. Sora needed help. "Are we done?" he said loudly. "Come on. Let's find that damn Swanmon." Izzy, Joe, and TK didn't react to his irritation, but Kari sent him a look of disapproval. Without waiting for a reply, he turned and walked further into the village, the others close behind him.

By the time they found the correct hut, dark clouds filled the sky, obscuring the descending sun. The Swanmon was busily reorganizing the stock of odd-looking herbs and potions. She looked up as they approached, her white feathers shining in the sunlight. A Floramon welcomed them happily, addressing herself as Swanmon's assistant. The plant-like digimon barely stood taller than Tai's waist and seemed thrilled that humans were visiting.

"Is there something you need?" the Floramon asked in a high-pitched voice.

"Uh, yeah. We were hoping you had some medicine for our friend. She's got uh…" Tai's voice trailed off as he realized he had forgotten, once again, what was wrong with Sora.

Izzy stepped forward. "We were told she has a 3RK4 virus. It happened while we were fighting a Machinedramon." Tai scowled. Izzy's memory was useful but annoying at times. Tai probably would have remembered what it was after a moment; he didn't need the little redhead making him look like a fool.

"Oh my." The Swanmon's elegant head turned and she exchanged a glance with the Floramon. "I believe we have something for that. Just a moment." She disappeared behind the folds of a tent.

Tai crossed his arms. How long was this going to take? He sent Izzy a surprised glance as he turned to the Floramon. "Can you tell us what continent we're on?" he asked.

"You're in central Server," the Floramon replied.

Izzy nodded as though the information was not surprising. "I see. What do you know about the Shades?"

The Floramon declined its leafy head, its cheerfulness disappearing. It lowered its frond-like arms. "They're corrupting digimon all over, taking control of them and forcing them to do terrible things." She blinked, her large blue eyes shining. "I once saw a whole group of Woodmon and Vegiemon be turned by Mentirimon."

Kari let out a small noise of despair and TK's blue eyes hardened. Joe was hanging onto the Floramon's every word, his expression set. Tai wondered how far the Shades' corruption of the digimon had spread.

"And that's not all – when they gather, they make the data unstable wherever they are. So more data streams show up, and storms arise all over the digital world because of them. We've had both an earthquake and a hurricane just last week." The small digimon shuddered.

"Don't worry about it. We're here to put a stop to them." Tai grinned down at her, and a little hope returned to her glossy blue eyes.

It was then that Swanmon emerged from the tent with a strangely shaped bottle tucked underneath her wing. She handed it to Tai and asked for a payment, but he never had time to answer. The ground shook so violently that Tai was knocked off his feet – he crashed headfirst into the Swanmon's front table, sending charms, bottles, and herbs scattering across the grass. He heard the Floramon let out a little cry and plunge backwards. Collecting himself and torn between fury and terror, he looked back at his friends. Kari had fallen; TK was pulling her to her feet as Joe stood in front of them as though protecting the group from whatever it was that had caused the apparent earthquake. Izzy held onto a pole supporting the hut, his other hand clutching his purple digivice.

Tai scrambled to his feet as digimon let out cries of terror and began fleeing in all directions. He could see the edges of a shallow crater in the earth that had not been there a moment before, with crushed bits of huts and tents strewn around. He brushed off plant parts and kicked aside a bottle he had nearly tripped over. He rejoined his friends. All of them had frozen, whether it was out of fear or shock, Tai could not tell.

His breath caught in his chest at the dark digimon hovering in the air above the crater. He registered a somewhat humanoid figure, wickedly curved silver claws, and a split shield on its back that performed as wings. Its steel, dragon-like head was held impassively in their direction, and it landed and spread its armored, clawed arms, declaring a challenge. Tai recognized this digimon. He knew it. He had fought along side it and cheered for it as it destroyed their enemies. Its coloring, however, was wrong.

Tai's digivice displayed the information he had prayed was incorrect. It gave a name: _Blackwargreymon_.

Kari didn't look at him, and her voice shook as she spoke. "Tai, I think it's Agumon," she said.

* * *

The fox digimon's tail swished as she worked, her massive white sleeves rolled back to avoid staining them in the concoction she brewed. Mimi approached her staring openly at her odd, flat fox's face. Yin and yang symbols adorned the strange digimon's robes. Mimi noticed large, black-clawed yellow feet poking out from beneath loose purple pant legs. A quick look at her green digivice told her this digimon's name was Taomon.

Taomon looked up as she drew near, and Mimi took a moment to admire the purple markings on her yellow-furred face. "Hello," she said almost nervously. Something about this digimon told her she should be on her best behavior. "My name is Mimi. I noticed you have the same symbols as the spirit of balance…?"

The fox digimon released the brush with which she had been stirring and fixed Mimi with a steely, black-eyed stare. Mimi could not suppress a shudder under the Taomon's intense gaze. "You are the chosen human for the spirit?" she asked, and her voice was smooth and feminine.

"Yes…I was hoping for answers about something that happened to me when I first spirit evolved into her."  
The Taomon gently picked up a nearby stool and placed it next to her, away from the cauldron. Mimi sat daintily on it, crossing her legs and sitting up straight. The cauldron smelled peculiar, like pepper.

"And what was it that happened?" asked the Taomon. Mimi noted black lips contrasting sharply with her yellow fur.

Mimi's brows furrowed and she bit her lower lip as she described the odd experience. "It was like…I could feel my friends there, but only their emotions and vaguely their locations. I could tell that Matt was trying so hard to control his spirit because I felt frustration and anger. I could tell Sora had just spirit evolved for the first time because she felt so powerful and capable. But I could see them, too, sort of, in my mind. They were lights, they each had a color. Tai's was orange, Matt's was blue…" She trailed off, thinking of the silver light and the emotions she had gathered from it.

Taomon watched her without emotion, but her voice carried interest. "Indeed…the spirit of balance, Sakuyamon, was a loyal and perceptive shaman digimon who took the safety of her comrades very seriously. She too had an odd connection with the other seven and could read their thoughts, memories, and emotions just by searching inside her own mind."

"I can't do that," said Mimi with a surprised edge to her voice.

"May I ask that you spirit evolve and tell me what you feel from your friends?" the Taomon said.

Mimi's hands clasped around her green digivice. She hadn't counted on being asked to spirit evolve. The last time she had done it, Joe had commanded her to because they were in danger, and she hadn't paid much attention to the sensations of her body transforming so rapidly into something that was no longer human. She had never wanted to be anyone other than Mimi, and it scared her.

Taomon drew back at the expression on her face, and Mimi, sensing the disapproval, stood quickly. This digimon was trying to help her, after all. She pressed her green digivice to her heart and blue code enveloped her body and leaves burst from nowhere, falling and drifting to the ground around her. Mimi realized she could no longer tell where her body stood as code wrapped itself around her and changed her digital makeup.

When the wary nature of Sakuyamon floated to the surface of her mind, Mimi knew the transformation was complete. She cast away the digital code with a wave of her staff. The rings hanging from it rattled. Several curious passerbies had paused to stare as she transformed.

Taomon watched her with an expressionless face even in the presence of a former guardian. Mimi turned to look at her, her pointed ears waving slightly with the movement. "I think perhaps," the fox digimon said, "you will gain more of Sakuyamon's old powers when you stop being afraid of her."

Mimi inwardly flinched. She wanted to be as in tune with her digimon spirit as Sora or Izzy seemed to be, but she had to admit that their new way of defending themselves was frightening. Even Joe handled it better than she had, and she remembered when he used to be a neurotic mess. Taomon was right. She knew nothing about being a digimon. She wished Palmon was there to coach her.

The ground shook beneath them and Mimi held onto her staff for support. The Taomon stood quickly, searching for the source. Digimon screamed and ran past them. A terrified thought passed through her mind and she turned her attention immediately to the seven lights in her head. The emotion had come from the orange and silver lights and quickly progressed to the purple, yellow, and pink lights as well – something had happened and Tai, Joe, Izzy, TK, and Kari were in trouble.

"Thank you," Mimi said as she grasped her staff. "I appreciate your help. But my friends are in danger. I have to help them."

Taomon nodded. "Good luck, spirit of balance."

* * *

"Matt, I'm not hungry."

Sora waved aside the tray of food the blond man attempted to hand her. She shoved some of the blankets off, feeling too warm once again. Her body temperature seemed to fluctuate between too hot and too cold, as though she had a fever. Wiping her forehead, she gave a hiss of frustration. They should have been out looking for beast spirits, but instead they were stuck taking care of her.

Matt frowned. "You haven't eaten all day." He looked a little less well cared for than he usually did, as he hadn't messed with his hair yet today and was looking a little bleary-eyed. He had surprised her, appearing in the middle of the night like he had. She hadn't recognized him immediately, as the virus was beginning to grip her nervous system, and it took some time to calm her down. He had stayed in bed with her should the virus attempt anything else. It had been a little awkward, but not unpleasant – it was nice having someone to look after her.

"I just can't eat right now." She tried to reel in her frustration at the look on Matt's face. He was just trying to help. "I appreciate your concern, but I can't stomach anything at the moment."

His face twisted, but she didn't realize it was out of concern right away. He glanced out the window where Trailmon racks could be seen stretching into the distance. Sora had noticed he kept checking the window every few moments, waiting in anticipation for the others to come back with the medicine. She prayed they were all right, being out in the open in broad daylight.  
She looked back at him. The discomfort in his face had returned, and Sora could see he had a lot on his mind. Perhaps she could get him to share some of it with her, to try and calm him down. "Why did you come back?"

His face turned to her, and he dropped his gaze as though ashamed. "It was just…the right thing to do." Sora inwardly sighed. He thought too much and didn't speak enough. Maybe that was the problem with them. Her interest piqued when he leaned in closer, his blue eyes avoiding hers and his brow drawn.

"Listen Sora, I need to tell you something…"

There was a _boom_ from downstairs that shook the paneled walls around them. Sora jumped and sat up straighter, and Matt grabbed his blue digivice from the bed. Her adrenaline spiked. As a soldier used to intense combat situations, hearing a loud noise like that was never a good sign.

The elegant door flew off its hinges and clattered against the floor, and there stood Odissmon. She was clutching Wizardmon by the folds of his clothes in her long, taloned hands, and as she stepped inside, her huge wings contracted against her back to allow her to pass through the doorway. The avian digimon wore the same twisted grin Sora had seen during her fight with her yesterday. Worse, Sora now knew what Odissmon represented – she was the Shade of Hate, an evil manifestation of Sora's own crest.

Odissmon licked her lips, her yellow eyes wild. "This should be easy," she said, her voice calm. She threw Wizardmon against the wall, where he slumped. "No one will stop me from collecting the spirit of wind. Hand over your digivice, girl, and make it easier on yourself." She smirked, as though she knew it wouldn't be that simple.

Matt stood quickly. Something unrecognizable was in his gaze as he clutched his blue digivice. Sora's veins turned cold as she grabbed his arm. "Matt, don't," she hissed. It was impossible to tell what would happen if Matt spirit evolved again. Sora wasn't sure if she could handle both Justimon and Odissmon at the same time.

"Yes, don't," the evil digimon mocked, but light had already erupted from Matt's digivice, and the transformation was quicker than the first. He burst out of the blue strands of data as Justimon and launched himself at Odissmon. His red, radiant sword was already drawn from his cybernetic arm, and Odissmon ducked beneath his swing, looking frustrated.

Sora threw the covers off and grabbed her red digivice off the bedside table. Matt was doing his best to protect her and was even controlling his spirit. She'd be damned if she let him fight her own Shade. She raised herself up, standing on shaking legs. The floor shook beneath her as the two digimon continued to fight. Odissmon grabbed Matt by the throat, throwing the cyborg digimon into the opposite wall with a sickening crash. The Justimon's figure slumped, and sparks danced around its cybernetic arm. Odissmon grabbed a couple of her larger feathers from her wings and threw them at Matt, curved and sharp.

Before Sora knew what was happening, she held a crossbow in her dainty, gloved hands, and shot. The arrow pierced through both feathers and stuck into the fallen door. Odissmon threw her a furious look, a frightening expression from such an insane digimon, but Valkyrimon was not swayed. However, Sora could tell that her power was limited. The virus weakened her even in digimon form.

Odissmon's upper lip pulled back in a snarl. Blood red feathers swirled around her, intensifying her power. "This will be fun," she growled.

* * *

There was almost no time to react. A fiery blast hurtled past Blackwargreymon, straight at the little hut. At them. Kari bolted, legs scrambling to get out of the way, unable to breathe out of fear. She was vaguely aware of someone beside her, just as frantic to escape the blast. In her haste and terror, she completely forgot the two digimon in the hut, unaware of the danger.

An explosion went off behind her, and Kari was thrown into the grass. She landed awkwardly on her shoulder and tumbled, and someone else careened into her. She rolled to a stop at the foot of someone's hut, her ears ringing and vision swirling. Someone grabbed her arm and turned her over. She recognized Joe, his glasses askew and face frantic.

"Are you okay?" he demanded. She could barely hear him over the panic.

Kari sat up quickly. Her head swam. Where was her brother? Where was TK? Smoke cleared before her, revealing figures amongst the dust some feet away. "I think so," she said. "Who shot at –"

Fire erupted beyond the smoke and dust, and Kari let out a scream as the figures disappeared behind it. The heat of the blaze was nearly incapacitating, but Kari didn't care – her friends were trapped in those flames, and she was powerless to help them. She gripped her black digivice, hauling herself to her feet, unsteady and shaking. Joe had already spirit evolved, and as Depthmon he advanced on the flames, intending to extinguish them.

It was then that Agunimon leapt from the smoke, landing before them. His expression was twisted with rage, but Kari could not be happier to see that he was okay. Izzy and TK soared to a stop beside the two of them as well, both in their digimon forms. TK's form, Seraphimon, was like a beacon amongst the destruction.

"Is everyone okay?" Tai demanded of them.

"Yeah, looks like it," said TK from behind his blue mask. "But…those digimon…" He turned, his eight wings held immobile as he hovered.

Kari followed his gaze and found the smoking remains of the medicinal hut. The Swanmon and Floramon's data particles wafted into the air.

Rage filled her like a swelling river, and she stared in disbelief at what remained of the digimon who had helped them. They had been living, breathing creatures – was it their fault they had been destroyed? Who could have done this? The two digimon had not been doing any harm. They made a living from helping other digimon. What was the point?

The answer came a moment later, as a huge, red dragon digimon descended from the sky, sending the smoke and dust whipping around them. It had no arms; instead large, bat-like wings made up the majority of its serpentine body. Its head was curved, cruel, and layers of pointed teeth could be seen in its lizard-like mouth. The monster paused a moment, investigating the smoking remnants, and transformed. When the blue data disappeared, Pavormon stood in its place, a small figure compared to the monstrosity he had been a moment before. He held a hand out and absorbed the digimon's data. Blackwargreymon landed next to him, his eyes empty.

"Greetings, chosen," Pavormon drawled, looking around at the destruction with cold, impassive eyes.

Izzy turned to Tai, his wings buzzing behind him as he hovered. "He's got a beast spirit," he said. It was impossible to tell what the insectoid digimon was thinking behind his bug-like mask.

Kari looked to Tai. What was he going to do? His partner was corrupted and his Shade had a spirit far more powerful than them. Would he order them to attack Agumon? Around them, digimon fled in panic, some pausing to frantically collect their possessions. Some stopped to help the injured; some ran or flew without a thought. Everywhere, chaos. Kari's head spun. She was supposed to be in class right now, studying and learning, but instead she was stuck in a war zone. Why had she agreed to this?

"_Tai!_"

Kari turned quickly to see Mimi pushing through the panicked crowd, a digimon as well. The Sakuyamon panted as she ran, pushing aside the digimon with her purple gloved hands, and when she reached the group she didn't pause to catch her breath. "Something's wrong at the base," she said. "Matt and Sora are fighting someone."

"How the hell do you know that?" Tai snapped.

Izzy landed on the ground. "Her spirit has a special ability. She can sense it."

Kari watched Tai grit his teeth and turned back toward Pavormon, who was watching the exchange with a smirk. The Shade lazily looked to his corrupted companion. "Gather some data for me," the fire digimon said, and with that, Blackwargreymon shot into the air. Squinting above her, Kari could see him preparing another strike.

"Tai, we need to fight," she said. She couldn't bear to watch more digimon be destroyed.

Flames began to spin around Tai's wrists. "Izzy, you're the fastest. Go help Matt and Sora." He looked to Mimi, TK, and Joe. "The rest of us will try to fight these guys."

Izzy gave a nod, and sped off, his wings creating a burst of wind behind him. Within seconds he couldn't be seen, zooming into the distance toward the mansion.

The rest of them looked to Tai, waiting for his orders. Why did they automatically defer to him? Kari wondered. There had been plenty of times when he had led them astray. Kari respected and admired her brother, but out of all of them, she didn't think he would make the best leader. He, as Agunimon, regarded both Pavormon and Blackwargreymon with a bloodthirsty expression, his eyes wild. Blackwargreymon threw another attack into the earth, causing another shattering explosion. He dove into the mass of scattered data, absorbing what he could reach. "Kill them both," he said.

"Tai, that's…that's Agumon," said Joe. The aquatic, dolphin-like digimon floated beside him.

"He's a monster now, I don't care who he was. Get rid of him."

The ringing returned to Kari's ears. Tai had just ordered the destruction of his own partner. She tried to remember a time when her brother had been so callous, but even when the digital world was at its worst, Tai had maintained his compassion. Her eyes caught the symbol for the spirit of flame on his belt. There was something very wrong with his spirit, she knew.

Pavormon sighed as he regarded them. "This is boring me," he said. "You." He gave Tai a curt nod. "Give me your spirit."

"Come and take it," snapped Tai.

Pavormon leapt, taking to the air with impressive strength, and shifted forms again. The sun was suddenly blocked out as the huge red dragon shaded them, looking down at the group, its jaws agape. Kari had never seen anything look more menacing; with this monster hovering above them, she had never felt so scared. There was nowhere to run, nowhere that this thing could not find them.

Pavormon's beast spirit breathed, and a torrent of flames descended on their group.

Kari heard several yells of panic. She ducked instinctively, throwing her arms over her head and crouching beside someone's legs – unbelievable pressure was exerted all around her, as though they were descending very quickly underwater, but no flames touched them. She jerked her head up to find Mimi maintaining a shield around them. She could see flames dancing around the transparent purple half-circle, twisting the magic into strange colors. Mimi had a vice grip on her staff and she had one arm raised, but Kari could see her strength faltering, and she began to bend under the pressure. Tai, Joe, and TK watched her, unable to help her or speak over the roar of the flames.

At last, the fiery blast ceased, and TK took to the skies. Tai and Joe followed him, their targets set on the descending beast, but Mimi stayed behind, kneeling and panting. Kari bent beside her, placing a hand on her yellow armor. She didn't know what Mimi needed, having never been a digimon herself, but Kari could guess that she had spent a large amount of her power just from maintaining that shield. "You need to rest, Mimi," she said, and Kari was surprised at her shaky voice.

But the fox-woman digimon stood, using her staff for support. "I can't," she said, and took off toward the battle. Kari watched her leave, impressed at her tenacity. The Mimi she knew would never shrug off her fatigue like that, and she certainly wouldn't charge into a battle in which the odds were against them. Being a digimon really did change them. Kari looked again at her black digivice, noting the crescent moon symbol on the screen.

Her digivice revealed that Pavormon's beast spirit was called Wyvermon. The dragon digimon roared at its attackers, having landed on the ground to offer a better challenge. Kari backed up several feet; she didn't know what she would do if Wyvermon targeted her specifically. She wasn't sure if the others could stop him. She ducked behind a part of a hut that was somehow still standing and watched the fight.

It was brutal. Tai and TK shot both of their attacks, one fiery and one a shining light, but their effects bounced harmlessly off of the beast spirit's tough red scales. Wyvermon roared, charging after them, and Joe threw his knives at the passing dragon. They stuck in his flesh, and the Shade of Fear turned, looking at the pinpricks in his skin. With a second roar, the digimon swung its tail, catching Joe and throwing him into Tai. The two digimon landed sprawled on the ground, and Wyvermon advanced on them, its jaws wide.

Mimi swung her staff and her smoky, purple dragons appeared, dancing around the digimon's head and swiping at its eyes and nose. Wyvermon flapped its wings, knocking Mimi to the ground with a gale of wind, and held her there with an enormous, clawed foot. Kari gasped as she struggled to free herself from the creature's grasp. TK prepared a second attack, seven holy lights hovering, waiting to be launched, but Blackwargreymon struck him from behind. The Seraphimon went down hard, and the corrupted digimon kicked him.

Kari could not watch anymore. She grabbed her dark digivice, holding it to her heart. Good lord, help me through this, she prayed, as the light erupted from it. Blue code enveloped her and she let the short feeling of nothingness overcome her senses.

She quickly became aware of some kind of black clothing covering most of her body. It wrapped around the top half of her head, leaving slits for the eyes and her mouth and jaw completely uncovered. Twin wings sprouted from her shoulder blades, sinking almost completely to the floor and curving slightly around her form. There was a dull ache in her left arm, as though someone was hanging from it, pulling it in its socket. She realized it was stretching, growing until her hand could almost grasp her own ankle. Her left hand had become enormous, clawed and wicked. Chains wrapped themselves around her arm, her waist, but did not impair her. Heels slipped onto her feet and long, wispy hair flowed behind her.

When the transformation was complete, she burst from the digital code and soared, her powerful wings immobile but somehow carrying her flawlessly. Kari had never felt so powerful – energy coursed through her new form like a fire, and no digimon, human or beast, could get in her way. Something, however, was missing, and she could not pinpoint what it was. She was flawless and powerful; what else could she need?

Kari first struck Blackwargreymon. Her longer arm had become a spike and she thrust it into his back, knocking the other digimon off his feet. He tumbled forward, unaware of what had hit him. She then soared up to Wyvermon and sent a spinning gale of darkness into his face. He roared, releasing Mimi and backing up several steps, crushing a few remaining huts beneath his feet.

Mimi sprang to her feet and ran to safety, stopping to pull TK up. Tai and Joe recovered as well; the Depthmon ran to Mimi, concerned for her after she had nearly been crushed. Tai's gaze, however, was on Kari. He looked at her as though she no longer was his sister.

Kari landed beside the group, her brother's expression disheartening her. What was the matter? They had bigger things to worry about. But when Mimi's shocked gaze caught her eye, looking up and down her new form, Kari realized she ought to do the same. She glanced down at herself. Black tights clung to her legs, demonic red eyes were etched on her right knee, and there was a skull on her right breast. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Kari…you're…" Mimi hesitated, sparing a glance at Joe. The Depthmon could not look at her, as though her new form was too revolting. She felt dull rage fire up in the back of her mind. "Your spirit. It's Ladydevimon."

Recognition sprang to the front of her consciousness like a slap; she remembered her own partner fighting this thing she had become, this terrible monster who had guarded the last Dark Master. She remembered the brutal fight, the insults, the cruel laughter.

And suddenly Kari realized what she had lost when she became Ladydevimon. She was missing what the others seemed to retain when they evolved: her humanity.

* * *

Could you tell what Kari's spirit was from the description of her spirit evolving? Lol.

I seem to have the most trouble writing scenes that have a lot of people in them. If you guys have any advice for that, that'd be awesome.

Next time: Izzy fights, we see what the heck happens with the above fight, and we find out (finally) who Tai was talking to when he got his spirit. Sorry, it was supposed to have been in this chapter, but there was no place for it.

Hope you enjoyed!


	7. Reveal

The blast threw Matt violently out of the mansion, where he landed sprawled and winded on the earth. The mansion was a short distance away, and he was too close to the cliff for comfort. His Justimon form left him almost instantly, and he raised himself with difficulty to find he was human again. Fatigue and soreness weighed on him, but he ignored it; Sora landed in a heap a few feet away, and Matt hid his face from the rubble of the castle she brought with her. Instead of reverting back to a human, her Valkyrimon form became shaded, like a silhouette, and to Matt's horror, a ring of data surrounded her. The miniaturized version of her spirit, sitting on its little platform, revealed itself – exposed and vulnerable.

"Sora!" he cried. Odissmon was not going to steal her spirit – if that digimon became whole…she was already so powerful, how would they handle her when she became a true digimon? "Sora, wake up! Your spirit –"

The dust surrounding the mansion blew away as Odissmon flapped through it, her large black wings whipping the dust aside. Her eyes widened upon seeing Sora's exposed spirit – this was something she had searched for her whole life, something all seven of the Shades craved…their chosen's spirit.

Odissmon muttered something to herself and strode toward it, both hands outstretched and her eyes wild and greedy. She looked insane, so focused on her target she never realized Matt was lying there, but she had lost her mind a long time ago. Matt tried to get up, but the battle between them had been harsh and he'd used most of his energy just defending himself. Dread filled his veins as Odissmon drew nearer; Sora was about to lose her spirit and there was nothing he could do to stop her. He continued to scream at Sora, anything to get her to wake up, to realize what was about to happen…

A black and green streak careened into Odissmon and with an enraged shriek, she hit the ground hard. Matt stared as Izzy, as Stingmon, slashed at her, his long silver claws alight with electricity. She kicked him back, her expression livid, and shot twin boomerang feathers at him.

Izzy leapt over them and aimed a jolt of electricity at her, but the avian digimon dodged it. She lunged at him, her face terrifying in its fury. Odissmon knocked him over and the two tumbled and tussled, slashing with claws and punching.

Movement to Matt's left caught his eye; Sora had reverted to a human at last, her exposed spirit disappearing, and with it the opportunity to steal it. She collapsed on the grass and lay there, completely still. Matt was too far away to see if she was all right. As Izzy and Odissmon fought, he crawled over to her. He found her barely conscious and her breathing shallow. He held her, cradling her head on his thigh, and she met his eyes and smiled. Matt smiled back, but guilt throbbed in the back of his mind. He had successfully controlled his spirit, but even it had not been enough. He turned his attention to the battle.

Odissmon threw Izzy from her and leapt at him again. Her long, taloned fingers wrapped around his throat and held him there, and Izzy grasped at her arm in an attempt to free himself. She looked at the pair of them and her face twisted, rage pushing her over the edge. Gone was her opportunity to steal Sora's spirit. "Give me your digivice, girl!" she screamed at them.

Matt held Sora closer, glancing helplessly at Izzy. The insectoid digimon, however, was focused on Odissmon. Electricity crackled from his hands and his antennae, and suddenly Odissmon's body lit up from a strong jolt. She cried out and released him instantly, staggering away from him, her wings held around her almost protectively. Without wasting the chance, Izzy attacked once more.

* * *

How could his baby sister have turned into that witch? Tai stared at Kari's spirit, his mind working frantically. He didn't know what scared him more – the fact that she had become Ladydevimon or that she wasn't concerned about it. There was no worry in that angled silver face; either she didn't care, or the spirit was twisting her personality.

He had to mull over it later; they were in the middle of a battle. Wyvermon had recovered from Kari's attacks, and Blackwargreymon leapt to his feet, his long claws spread. Tai looked between them, torn between who to attack: his Shade, or his partner.

"Tai, we can't win this." He wasn't surprised to find that this statement came from Joe; the Depthmon looked at him, his hands dripping water. The neurotic side of the guy he had known for ten years had at last shown himself. Tai was right to guess that he hadn't changed. His temper sparked when Mimi nodded in agreement.

Tai grit his teeth and faced his enemies. "Yes we can," he growled.

Wyvermon lumbered toward them, and without warning opened his mouth and fire blazed toward them, twisting and weaving itself into a huge blast that took over Tai's field of vision. Mimi threw a shield around them, and the flames blew around the surface, looking like bright, orange and red ribbons. Cracks appeared in the purple and pink exterior, and they had no time to react before flames burst through and Tai's world was engulfed in flames.

He was vaguely aware of unimaginable heat as his body was blown backwards. He tumbled and landed on his back in the grass as fire burned around him. Blood pounding in his ears, he rolled over, ignoring the dull ache in his head and the thick plumes of smoke surrounding him. The fire had been powerful, but he had not been burned – he realized that the warrior of flame was most likely immune. He rose to his feet, enraged as he tried to see over the smoke and flames surrounding him. Pavormon was messing with them, like a coward, hiding behind his beast spirit. How would he fare one-on-one against Tai?

Tai leapt forward through the smoke. It was so thick it was like jumping into murky water, and he could not see his own partner soaring through the air directly in front of him and slam into him. Tai landed hard on the ground.

Rage engulfed his senses and the flames on his wrists smoldered, becoming alight with dancing fire. He raised himself up but Blackwargreymon shoved him down again with a huge black foot, and stabbed with one of his clawed arms. Tai rolled to the right, then to the left as the corrupted digimon stabbed once more. A bloodthirsty, feral charge erupted in the back of his mind and suddenly the flames around his wrists became a bonfire expelled from his body. Blackwargreymon was thrown from him, writhing underneath the force of the fire. He disappeared into the thick smoke, and Tai rose to his feet once more, squinting through the chaos.

Fire burned through the grass around him, spreading and igniting whatever it touched, but Tai paid no attention. He took a step forward, intent on his query.

A mass of black and green shot through the smoke and slammed into Tai, throwing him back once more. He landed on his back, enraged that he had let that happen again. His body ached as he rose; clearly Agunimon was reaching his limit. He pushed himself up. There would be no giving up, even if his digimon form gave out.

His senses were suddenly overloaded and before he knew what was happening, he was crouching amidst the fire, terror engulfing his mind. All he could see were memories and hallucinations brought on by his own overwhelming fear – the first time this had happened, he had seen his own friends hurt, killed in fights they could not win. Now he could see the potential for his own failures. He couldn't win this fight. Wyvermon was too strong, Blackwargreymon too fast – and even though, in the back of his mind he knew Pavormon was doing this, he realized this future was inevitable. If only Tai had tried harder, fought harder…they could have won this.

Tai slowly became aware of his feet leaving the earth. Shaking the last of the terror away, he looked down to find an arm covered silver and blue armor under his right shoulder. He looked to his left and found TK, as Seraphimon, carrying him. They were only a few feet off the ground, speeding along the smoking remnants of the village.

"What happened?" he said. "Where are…Kari, Mimi, and Joe?"

TK did not look at him. "Retreating," he said. Tai grit his teeth at the word. "We had to, Tai. There was no winning this one."

"We could have done it, if we had all been here," he said.

The younger man didn't answer immediately, skimming over the wreckage of the place and slowly descending. Tai wondered vaguely if he was too heavy. "Mimi called to you. She saw you fighting Blackwargreymon. She had to run when Wyvermon went after her. You didn't even try to find the rest of us, you just wanted to fight."

Anger bubbled to the surface of his mind and, as usual, his mouth ran before his brain caught up to him. "I was trying to win the battle! At least I wasn't bent on retreating from the start!"  
TK was saved from answering as they approached the others waiting for them at the edge of the village beside a parked Trailmon. They appeared unhurt, but tired and somewhat worse for wear. Mimi turned away as they landed, and Joe fixed them with a stare Tai couldn't see behind the Depthmon's helmet. He noticed the aquatic digimon was clutching Sora's medicine in his large hands. Kari was gazing around at the destruction, her silver face impassive. Mimi jumped when a huge explosion could be heard, shaking the ground. Tai could feel the shockwave from it in his chest, and as he turned, he saw what was left of the village become engulfed in flame and data particles.

Tai pushed past the others and clambered onto the Trailmon, and they followed suit. As the Trailmon pulled away, for once silent, Joe spoke up. "I hope Izzy, Matt, and Sora are okay."

Mimi turned to him, half her weight leaning on her staff. "They are alive," she said. "But Izzy is still fighting."

An unfamiliar emotion crept up in Tai's subconscious, and he realized he was jealous of the little redhead for coming to Sora's rescue. He should have been there, but Izzy had been the fastest – even if Tai had taken the Trailmon, he probably would not have made it there in time.

"Should we stay in form?" asked TK. He had a hand on the rail of the train, allowing his fatigue to show.

Tai grunted. "Yeah. Just in case."

He turned to the window, where the smoking remnants of a once prosperous village could be seen, shrinking as they sped away. Tai grit his teeth. They could have won. They could have saved most of the village. Tai could have taken Pavormon's data, absorbing him to become stronger. Instead they had been forced to run away, denying him the victory he desired.

"Frustrating, isn't it?"

Tai jerked his head around. The voice had come from everywhere and nowhere, blocking out the sound of the train's engine and wheels and the wind humming by. He realized it was the same deep, gravelly voice who had directed him to his spirit the day before. The others, however, had not reacted.

"I can give you the power you seek."  
Tai looked to the window again, annoyed at this being who suggested he was weak. _Who are you?_

"I am the owner of your spirits, the creator of the Spirits of Flame. You may call me Ancientgreymon."

* * *

Izzy wasn't sure how long he could keep fighting. The enraged Shade he faced showed no signs of fatigue; he was confronting the full brunt of her anger after he cost her the opportunity to steal Sora's spirit. Perhaps she couldn't fathom her own exhaustion, having lost her mind.

But Sora and Matt hadn't been able to maintain their digimon forms after taking a hit, and Izzy could see them out of the corner of his eye, huddled together and watching. He wasn't going to let them get hurt just because he was tired.

Odissmon was a foot away from him, her wild eyes locked onto his. She swung her curved talons, and Izzy was too slow to dodge. Her curved claws caught him in the chest, taking green bits of armor with it. He aimed a high kick, slamming into her shoulder, ignoring the stinging in his chest, and struck Odissmon again, knocking her down. Electricity sparked from his claws and Odissmon's form lit up again, and she shrieked.

Just the effort of maintaining the electric charge was exhausting, and Izzy had to cease his attack before it drained him of his power entirely. As the jolt faded away, Odissmon appeared to realize her advantage and swung again. Her claws struck him and he faltered, and was unprepared for the blood red blast that erupted from her wings. Izzy was thrown into the wrecked mansion, his head and back slamming against the stone. Dazed and winded, he had almost no time to react as Odissmon launched at him, talons first and screaming. He fired a weak bolt of thunder, stopping Odissmon in her tracks, and jumped up to defend himself.

She jabbed at him, swiping with her wicked claws, and he blocked them against his huge black hands. He could sense Stingmon's mind analyzing, calculating, weighing the options. His digimon side wanted to run, but how could he get Matt and Sora to safety? He probably couldn't carry both of them very far.

Odissmon suddenly parried both of his strikes, knocked his hands aside and grabbed his shoulder. With a heave she threw him over her head; he worked his wings and landed feet first on the grass, but a second red blast collided with him. He threw his arms up and skidded backwards, coming to a stop beside the edge of the cliff, his entire body aching.

"_Izzy!_"

He jerked around. Wizardmon was twenty feet below him in the empty Trailmon station. He was pointing urgently at the approaching Trailmon. Squinting, Izzy could see his friends aboard it.

Odissmon was preparing another attack; he was not about to get hit by her crimson blast again. He fired off the strongest jolt of electricity he could, and powered his wings. He flew over the dazed avian digimon and landed behind Sora and Matt, scooping them up in his arms. Ignoring their surprise, he took flight again, and zoomed past Odissmon once more. She shrieked as she realized what was happening; Izzy disappeared down the cliff, turning sideways as he entered the Trailmon's open doors to allow himself, Matt, and Sora a safe landing. As soon as they were safely inside, the doors slammed shut, the Trailmon began moving, and Izzy released them. The last of his strength ebbed away and he could no longer hold his Stingmon form. A human once again, he collapsed on the nearest seat.

Matt led Sora to the seat opposite him. The others had reverted to their human forms as well, and sat around him in varying degrees of exhaustion. Joe and Mimi sat beside him, looking as tired as he felt. Wizardmon sat at the end of he seats, holding his staff and completely silent. The sun had disappeared beneath the horizon, and night had at last fallen. The others smelled like smoke, and Izzy was vaguely reminded of the light of their campfires as they set up for the night during those first days in the digital world. Izzy's eyelids began to droop, but he opened them in surprise as Tai strode up to Sora and Matt. He looked like a disappointed commander. "What the hell happened?" he demanded.

Sora looked wearily up at him, and then glanced to Matt, who answered for her. "Odissmon found us somehow," he said. "We spirit evolved, but she was too much for us."

"You _both_ spirit evolved?" Tai looked from one to the other, his eyebrows drawn together and his mouth somewhat slack. "She's sick and you can't control your spirit!"  
"We didn't exactly have a choice, Tai." Sora fixed him with an uncharacteristically cold stare. "I guess we could have let Odissmon kill us. And Matt controlled his spirit." Tai shook his head and scoffed. "What happened with you guys?"

"Pavormon showed up." TK looked up from his digivice. There was unmistakable frustration in his tone. "And someone else, too."

Tai crossed his arms and sat. His expression was unreadable. "It was…Agumon, but he'd been corrupted. He was Blackwargreymon."

Izzy already knew this, but watching Sora and Matt react to the news was still painful. No doubt they were thinking about their own partners, or perhaps acting out of sympathy for Tai as he watched their horrified expressions. Izzy could only think of Tentomon and what had become of him.

"Anyway, Pavormon had a beast spirit," Tai continued, his eyes on the floor of the train. "We all spirit evolved to fight, but he ended up destroying the village anyway and took a lot of data…"

"You all spirit evolved?" Matt's eyes had narrowed. "Even Kari?"

Tai's expression hardened. For the first time, Izzy looked at the younger girl with some thought; she was completely silent, staring down at her dark digivice, her face impossible to read. Izzy wondered if she was in shock. His curiosity spiked; had they discovered what Kari's spirit was?

Izzy's heart clenched when Kari spoke. He wished someone had answered for her. "It…it was corrupted," she said. "I turned into Ladydevimon."

Ice filled his veins at the memory of the evil witch-like digimon who had guarded the last dark master. His own partner had fought against her, and with the aid of Kari's, they had been victorious after a brutal fight. Izzy could not imagine what her mind must have been like. He pictured cruelty, viciousness, and cunning mixed with Kari's friendly, selfless personality. He felt terrible for her.

There was silence. The dull hum of the Trailmon's engine could be heard over the turn of its wheels. Izzy watched Kari, his mind working. Why had the Shades corrupted her spirit, and how did Wizardmon find it? Did her spirit have any long-term effects?

Matt's voice jerked him out of his thoughts. "So…what now? Where are we going?"

"We are heading north, to Light Sector." Wizardmon spoke up from his spot at the end of the seats. "You must find your beast spirits."

Sora nodded in agreement, and some of the others followed suit. Izzy remembered what Wizardmon had said about the beast spirits being difficult to control. How well would he be able to control it, having been given a human spirit that was calm and cunning? He'd had no practice, unlike Matt, who'd received a difficult spirit from the start. What if he attacked the others?

"It will take approximately a day to travel there. This Trailmon has food reserves and other necessities."  
"We can't go home?" TK stared at Wizardmon. Joe raised his head, and Izzy knew he was thinking about his niece.

The caped digimon bowed his head. "I'm sorry. It is impossible to leave while traveling; you would appear exactly where you had left, regardless where the Trailmon took us."

This made sense to Izzy, but he didn't miss the puzzled expressions of some of his friends. Apparently the discussion was over, because Tai asked where the food was kept, and he and Matt went to retrieve some when Sora stated quietly that she was hungry. TK walked over to Kari and they sat together, talking quietly. Sleepiness tugged at Izzy, and he allowed his eyes to close. Spirit evolving and fighting as Stingmon had clearly taken a lot from him.

Someone sat next to him, and his eyes snapped open. Sora sent him an apologetic glance for disturbing him. "I'm sorry, Izzy, but I wanted to thank you for working so hard to save Matt and me from Odissmon."

The gratitude was surprising, but Izzy nodded and forced a smile. "No problem." He'd only done what he had been ordered to do. Tai had recognized that Izzy could get there the fastest, so he sent him.

On Izzy's other side, Joe leaned forward and handed Sora a small silver bottle. "We got your medicine," he said. His voice was raspy and his glasses needed cleaning.

Her eyes widened. "Oh – thank you," she said, examining the bottle. She took a hesitant sip. Izzy watched her wearily, unsure how she was supposed to consume it.

"What happened after I left?" Izzy asked Joe.

The older man shook his head, his face tired. "It was just…chaos. Pavormon absorbed the data of those two digimon, and he introduced Blackwargreymon to us…and then Tai ordered us to destroy his partner. Then Pavormon changed into his beast spirit…"

"Tai wanted Agumon destroyed?" Sora's voice had risen, and she looked quickly to the door Matt and Tai had disappeared behind. "Without even trying to find a way to cleanse the corruption? I mean it's his partner."

Joe stared ahead, the animation gone from his mannerisms. "He didn't seem to care, I guess. He just gave the order. We had to fight Wyvermon and Blackwargreymon after that. We almost didn't make it."

"Tai said that…after Pavormon absorbed the data?" Izzy hesitated, his mind working. Pavormon was Tai's Shade…

There was a soft giggle from his right. "Look, he's got a theory. You can tell by his face." Izzy almost smiled at Mimi's quip, but he was too tired.

"What is it, Izzy?" asked Sora. She continued to sip on the medicine as though it was a soda.

Izzy knew that the others didn't always appreciate his theories, but Sora's sincerity encouraged him to speak. "I think that when our Shades absorb data and become stronger, we…lose a bit of ourselves. Tai has undoubtedly become harsher since Pavormon has been collecting data, and right after his Shade absorbed two digimon, Tai ordered the destruction of his own partner."

Joe and Sora looked at one another. Joe's eyes were wide, and Sora had furrowed her brow, apparently deep in thought. Izzy suddenly felt uncomfortable; he knew he shouldn't have said anything. He'd just made the tension worse, made his friends worry more.

"We've got to destroy those Shades." Sora nodded at Joe's words, and Izzy was surprised at the defiance in his voice. "Now more than ever." Mimi looked away. Izzy knew she didn't want to destroy anything. He sat in somewhat disbelief; the others had accepted his theory without question. Perhaps they didn't think they were a waste of time anymore.

Their discussion was stopped with the arrival of Matt and Tai carrying armfuls of food. They ate in silence, Izzy contemplating his theory, thinking about flaws and loopholes.

They traveled for hours. Joe found a few blankets and pillows in the car behind them and Izzy gladly accepted his share. He was asleep almost immediately, and slept well into the morning, much to his embarrassment. They spent their time recovering from the fights and regaining their strength in preparation for their next inevitable battle. When boredom set in, they invented games they could play with no recreational equipment and the space of a train car. Izzy was impressed with his friends' tenacity; they had just recovered from an intense battle and they were making up games and having fun, trying to make the most of the situation. The Trailmon sped past several towns and villages, neglecting to stop at the stations offered. The others asked Wizardmon if they could take some time to look for their partners, but he declined. They could not take the risk.

Izzy realized that he had spent most of the time sleeping and thinking. As they traveled across a bridge over a wide stretch of ocean, he watched Kari carefully as she spoke to TK. She seemed to have recovered from the initial shock of finding out what digimon her spirit held. Did she not care what it was, or did she just accept that it was powerful and could end up helping them? He found himself wishing he had received the corrupted spirit, if to just study it.

The bright sky behind the Trailmon's windows suddenly became dark. Izzy only had a moment to realize that a huge wave, perhaps thirty feet tall and even wider, had reared itself up from the water and plummeted toward them like a thick wall.

* * *

Sorry about the lack of focus on the chosen other than Tai, Kari, and Izzy; after the next chapter, there will be more individual time with them.

Next time: Joe saves the day, another huge battle, and Tai messes up again. Hope you enjoyed!


	8. Clash

Sorry for the slight lateness of this chapter. Get prepared to meet the last of the Shades, though :)

* * *

When the water hit, it was as though a second Trailmon had crashed into them. With thousands of pounds of force behind the tidal wave, it was not difficult to send the car carrying the nine of them plummeting into the ocean below.

As soon as the wave collided with them, Joe and the others pitched forward out of their seats. His hands hit the floor of the train hard and stung from the impact. He could hear his friends crying out and swearing, and before he could right himself the train tilted harshly. There was a swooping sensation in Joe's stomach and he and the others hit the windows on the other side of the train, then a terrible noise as the train hit the water below. Beneath them, water swirled around the windows, and when he glanced up, the upper windows were quickly engulfed as well.

Joe pried himself from the windows he had fallen on and thanked whoever was watching them that they had not cracked. The others did the same, watching the windows and glancing around in various states of panic. Mimi had frozen, gazing at the water beneath them as they sank further. Joe instinctively reached for her, but he jumped when Tai leapt to his feet. "We're sinking!" he said, addressing apparently the Trailmon.

"No shit," said Matt. He had a hold on Sora, who crouched beside him with a hand around her torso. Joe hoped her wound had not reopened. Wizardmon rose as well and began examining the Trailmon for cracks and damage.

"What are we going to do?" said Mimi. Her voice was hollow and scared. There was an enormous _thump_ below them, and sand collected around the windows at their feet. They had hit the ocean floor, and it was impossible to tell how deep they had sunk. Joe's ears began to pop.

Izzy stood up beside him, Joe had forgotten he was there, having been so shocked by the impact of the water. His friend seemed to be the only one who was calm about the ordeal; when Joe stood as well, he couldn't keep his legs from shaking. "Did something cause that tidal wave?"

"That's what you're concerned about?" snapped Tai. He waved his arms as though this ordeal was a huge inconvenience to him. "What the hell _are_ we going to do?"

There was silence, and Joe's heart sank; no one had any idea. TK and Kari rose, and Joe was glad to see they were uninjured. Tai's sister's eyes were wide, and she was looking about the dark water with a sort of fascination.

"Well, all right, I have an idea." Tai turned to Joe, much to his surprise. The younger man wore an expression of grim determination. "Joe, your spirit can swim, right? Go out there and see if you can get us to shore."

There was an outraged noise from Matt and Sora, and Mimi pulled her eyebrows together in disdain. "I can't believe you're so quick to send Joe out there," said Matt, his voice hard. He glared at Tai, who glared right back. "You need to think about other people's feelings – and their safety."

"Do you have a better idea?" said Tai. He gestured at the water surrounding them. "We're trapped underwater and we happen to have someone who can turn into a dolphin thing."

"There might be unfriendly sea digimon out there," said Sora in that quiet, reasonable way of hers.

Joe realized it was time he spoke up. "Look, guys, I don't mind going," he said. The others looked at him in surprise. He couldn't blame them; he knew they very well remembered the spineless boy he used to be.

"Are you sure?" Mimi looked at him, her eyes soft. There were times she couldn't hide her affection for him, and other times she pretended as though they were barely friends. He understood her better than she thought he did.

Joe nodded with a small smile he hoped would soothe her. "Yeah. Don't worry about it. Depthmon will be there to look out for me." He had only spirit evolved twice, but he fully trusted his spirit of water, despite its airy and playful nature. When there was a task at hand, Depthmon had come through for him.

Wizardmon stepped forward, his pointed hat tilted from the fall. "How are we going to get him out there? Trailmon?"

Their transportation spoke up for the first time. "Uh, I guess if you get him into another car I can open the doors on it."

"But just that car, right?" said Sora. Her eyebrows were raised, and Joe tried not to think about what would happen if the doors above his friends were suddenly opened.

"Yes."

"Is Depthmon strong enough to lift the whole train?" asked TK. The younger man stood on the wall of the train between its windows close to Kari. He had his arms crossed and his happy smirk was absent; it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

Joe thought back to the raw power he had felt when he spirit evolved, not just in his tail adept for swimming. "I think so," he said.

Tai gave a brisk nod. "All right, cool. Let's get started, then." Matt sent Tai another dark look that went unnoticed.

"Just go into the car behind you," said the Trailmon, "spirit evolve, and I'll open the doors."

An uneasy feeling churned in Joe's stomach, but he ignored it. As soon as he became Depthmon, he wouldn't feel as nervous. "Okay," he said. He sent Mimi a final glance and found wide, worried brown eyes. As he turned and walked into the car behind them, he hoped it wouldn't be the last he saw of his friends. He knew of the potential danger once he left the train, but he was the only one who could get them out of this. He closed the two doors separating the previous car and stood in the new, empty car.

With a swallow, Joe brought out his silver digivice. I hope this works, he thought, and pressed the larger button on the side. The digital code, familiar now, enveloped him and his vision grew bright.

Joe had become more accustomed to the strange transformations his body underwent when he spirit evolved, but it was still unnerving when his legs melded together and became a dolphin's tail. He allowed the heavy armor to settle onto his shoulders and raised his head a bit when the helmet formed, letting it fuse to his head somewhat easier. His hands grew large and webbed armor appeared between his fingers. He didn't react when fins grew from his wrists and back.

When the transformation was complete and the digital code disappeared, Joe stood up straighter and flexed his powerful tail. Depthmon's mind surfaced beside his, curious about the mission at hand. "I'm ready," he said. His voice was normal; just like it was when he was human.

"All right – watch yourself, kid."

The doors above him opened suddenly and salt water poured in, a loud torrent of water. Joe leapt back instinctively, and he felt Depthmon's spirits rise at the prospect of swimming again. Water pooled below him, rising to his shoulders in a matter of seconds. He supposed it was cold, however Depthmon did not have much of a perception of temperature. His old claustrophobia reared up in the back of his mind and he forced himself to focus instead on Depthmon's excitement. He would be fine. His spirit form could hold its breath for hours – and there was no need to fear rising water when Depthmon was so adept at swimming.

When the water reached his neck, he took a huge breath, and his head was submerged a moment later. Bubbles could be seen around the open doorways. Joe watched them slowly dissipate, treading water gently and waiting. When at last the water calmed, he kicked hard with his tail toward the nearest opening. He had to turn sideways to allow his wide shoulders to fit through the door. Once he was through, he kicked again and ascended, then turned and looked at their predicament.

The Trailmon lay on its side on the sandy ocean floor, illuminating the water a short distance. He could just see the colorful shapes of his friends through the windows. He couldn't make out what they were doing, but he imagined they must have watching for him. Joe turned in the water, trying to become familiar with his surroundings; even with Depthmon's laser-like water vision, the surrounding ocean was terribly murky. If he focused, he could just see larger shapes moving about in the dark distance. The sight sent a chill under his armor. He needed to work fast.

Joe kicked his tail and swam down beside the trapped Trailmon. Placing his wide hands underneath the side of the first car, he planted his tail in the sand and heaved. The Trailmon moved, lifting upward at an angle. Joe did not miss the surprise from his friends inside, nor the burn in his arms. Joe hesitated. He hadn't thought of the fact that he may have to roll the Trailmon to the shore, which would surely harm his friends. It was also difficult to move the Trailmon with his tail in the sand. How could he swim and keep the Trailmon level at the same time?

Joe raised his tail, and in return the Trailmon sank again. Then he kicked, propelling himself forward, forcing him to hold on to the metal beneath his fingers with a tighter grip. He and the Trailmon and his friends inside it sailed forward several feet before the momentum faded and they sank to the ocean floor once more. Joe released the Trailmon, treading water again and allowing his strength to return. This was going to be more difficult that he'd thought. He hoped the sudden movement hadn't jarred his friends too much, but he didn't know of any other way to move them.

He ignored Depthmon's disappointment over the lack of playful swimming as he gripped the Trailmon again. It was then that a painful sting caught his left shoulder – he dropped the car and whipped around, and his stomach seemed to drop. Behind him was a giant white squid-like digimon he recognized as Gesomon, with no eyes and huge arms. The monster opened its fanged mouth and swung an arm. Joe instinctively rocketed upward and the Gesomon instead struck the Trailmon. Joe looked down at the train, worry knotting his stomach – it shook somewhat, but didn't seem damaged.

Both of Gesomon's arms shot upward at him, looking like twin paws growing by extremes. He ducked around the first, but the second struck him, its black claws raking across his armor. The impact was reeling, and for a moment his head spun and his ears rang.

A thick black goo suddenly engulfed his vision, and darkness overwhelmed his vision. His hands gripped his face, trying to pry it off, but it stuck to him like a weird sort of glue. Panic enclosed his heart – what was he going to do if he couldn't see? There was an enemy digimon only feet away and his sight had just been taken from him. He tugged harder at the goo.

There was a crushing blow to his back and Joe plummeted toward the ocean floor, landing on his stomach in a heap amongst the sand. His back and shoulders ached and his head spun, but a piece of the black goo had torn free from his helmet. He had a sliver of vision available, and in it Joe could see Gesomon hurtling toward him with its jaws wide.

Depthmon's instincts kicked in, and Joe threw the hidden knives in his wrists. They sailed through the water and cut through the squid-like digimon with surprising accuracy, tearing the Gesomon into slices. It jerked once, shocked, and then burst into data particles. Joe held a hand out and collected them. They'd need all the data they could get, and allowing his spirit to become a little stronger couldn't hurt. He tried to slow his pounding heart. That had been too close.

As the data particles flew toward his hand, he caught sight of a small silhouette in the distance. He didn't think much of it, as the unknown creature looked about his size, but he realized it was approaching him with a breakneck speed. Joe caught a flash of blue, silver, and black armor before something caught his throat and slammed him against the side of the Trailmon.

"Don't take data that doesn't belong to you," hissed a low voice. "Nice to meet you, Loyalty. I'm interested in this spirit you possess."

Fear bled through his already terrified body. He knew immediately who had attacked him. Joe turned his head and saw a humanoid face, longish dark hair, and twin tridents strapped to his attacker's back. His face was angled and long, and silver markings surrounded his almost black eyes. "Desomon," he said. He had committed to memory the name of his own Shade.

Thin eyebrows shot up. "Ah, you know who I am. You've had help." His voice was halfhearted, almost bored, and Joe could see unease in the Shade's dark eyes. Did he even want to be here? Did he really want Joe's spirit? He remembered what he'd been told about this particular Shade, the Shade of the Forsaken – he was unpredictable in the side he chose. Joe shifted nervously, trying to wrench himself from Desomon's grasp. What was he going to do? The others were counting on him to get the Trailmon to land, but he was stuck grappling with his Shade on the side of the car.

Desomon released him and swam a pace backward, and Joe noticed he had fins attached to his ankles and wrists. "Give me your spirit and I won't have to hurt you," he said. He drew his twin tridents. Each was tipped with points that were half a foot long and made of steel.

Joe produced his knives. His Shade may have been powerful and decided to attack at a rather inconvenient time, but he wasn't going to let Desomon take his spirit – or hurt the others.

* * *

There was a violent thud against the wall of the car that shook the entire train. Sora's heart sank and terror for her friend flooded her veins. Something was wrong outside, and Joe had been attacked. She stepped closer to the windows above them, ignoring the throbbing ache in her stomach and the bickering between Tai and Matt. She had to know what was going on.

"Now he's being attacked, Tai! There's something out there!" Matt's voice rose, and Sora could tell he was getting upset from his agitated posture and angry expression. He held his hands out. "We have to do something."

Tai drew back his lips in almost a snarl. "What do you propose we do? We don't know how deep we are and how many enemies are out there. None of our digimon can breathe underwater, as far as I know." Matt shook his head, glancing again at the windows. "We'll have to trust that Joe can do it. There's nothing we can do to help him."

"We can't just leave him." Mimi had directed her attention away from the windows and turned toward the disagreement. Sora could see that her eyes were watery.

Kari nodded. Izzy's expression was pained. Sora wondered if he felt as useless and she did. Wizardmon sat at the end, silent and his expression pained. Only TK looked relatively calm, watching the windows and pacing.

Suddenly the car jerked beneath them. Sora grabbed the nearest bar and braced herself as the Trailmon lurched into motion, speeding along the ocean floor. She exchanged a hopeful look with Matt, who was beside her, awkwardly sitting sideways on the seats. Had Joe fought off or fled from whatever had attacked him? Then the car came to a halt and Sora rocked forward. Several thuds and clangs of steel sounded behind her, on the other side of the wall. _Oh no_. She backed away from the side of the car.

Matt stood quickly. The color had drained out of his face and his hands were shaking. "Tai, we have got to get out there," he growled.

"Justimon probably doesn't do well underwater," was Tai's retort. The brunette sat against the seats as well, his arms crossed and his legs propped up against the row of seats on the other side.

"I can't believe you're just going to sit here while Joe risks his life!"

Mimi huddled in the center of the broken walkway, hugging her knees. Sora felt terribly for her – she knew how close she was to Joe. She placed a comforting hand on Mimi's shoulder, but the younger girl didn't seem to notice.

"There's nothing we can do! He's got to do it on his own!"

"We might be in shallower water now. You don't know how much trouble he's in. He might need us!"

"Guys." Izzy spoke up, his voice small compared to the raised voices of Tai and Matt. "It's leaking."

Sora looked up. Dull cracks had appeared in the windows above them, and water began to trickle into the car. It trailed along the walls and dripped from the ceiling. A drop of salt water landed on Sora's capris pants. Her stomach dropped.

For a moment they stared stupidly up at the ceiling. The only sound that could be heard was the battle taking place only feet away from them. Then Tai swore and the car lurched once more. Matt returned to his spot beside Sora as they sped through the water once more. Her boyfriend's face was drawn and he was still pale.

Sora's head was pressed against the wall as they were propelled through the water. She had never been very religious, but she was willing to pray to any entity if it would keep her friend safe while she was stuck in a leaking train car. Joe would need all the help he could get. She hated what they were doing, sending Joe into such danger and staying behind to wait. Sora grit her teeth. There had to be another option.

"Tai, he can't keep this up forever." Matt spoke up again. He sounded calmer, but Sora wondered if it was because he felt defeated and strained. Arguing with Tai could have that effect.

Tai scowled. "He's going to have to."

"It's wrong to let him fight this." Sora had spoken before she realized she had entered the dangerous argument without thought. Tai's head snapped around to look at her, and his eyes were wide. "If he gets hurt, it's going to be our fault."

Her old friend just stared at her. Guilt knotted in Sora's stomach, and she had to force herself to maintain eye contact. "You're against me too?" he said at last. She had to look away. Tai may have been hard-headed and stubborn, but it hurt to realize that he had trusted her to be on his side at all times. Matt was mercifully silent. He at least knew when not to speak.

A change in the light caught Sora's eye and she looked up again. The windows above them had become brighter as they continued to move through the water. Then a shining blue sky could be seen above them, and water fell away from the soaked windows. Sora's heart leapt. Joe had done it. They had reached the surface at last.

There was another moment of silence as they realized they had been removed from the danger of the water. A wave of relief overcame Sora and she slumped against the wall, ignoring the ache in her torso. At least they no longer had to worry about drowning. She sent a sideways glance to her boyfriend. Some of Matt's color had returned to his face, but he was not watching her. She turned to find Tai climbing out of the doors above them.

Sora stood, watching Tai pull himself out of the car. His legs dangled in the car. "Joe?" she heard him call.

Silence. Then, "No! Get down!"

A thud above them – Tai disappeared, Sora caught a glimpse of Joe, still as Depthmon, hurtling after him. Matt swore and brought out his blue digivice. Before anyone could protest, he had spirit evolved, and Justimon leapt out of the car. Shouts and digimons' special attacks could be heard beyond the Trailmon.

Sora could feel Mimi shaking beside her and she tried to put her out of her mind. There was a battle going on and she wasn't yet a part of it. She turned toward her remaining friends. Izzy and TK were preparing to spirit evolve, and Kari hesitantly clutched her dark digivice. Only Mimi had not moved. "Let's go," said Sora.

Izzy nodded, and blue digital code enveloped him. Sora followed suit, pressing the large button on the side of her digivice. She ignored the two terrified faces of the younger girls beside her as her vision was overwhelmed by the digital code. It was all right to be scared, but there was no place for it when others were fighting. They needed her help.

Wings sprouted from her shoulder blades and a visor covered her eyes. Feathers grew and swept back at her temples. Sora was used to the changes by now. For her, transforming into a digimon was now as normal as changing clothes. She knew that the others didn't feel the same way, but she felt a special connection with Valkyrimon that she was sure her friends didn't understand. They held the same morals, the same values, the same thirst for justice.

When the changes had finished, she stepped toward the door above her with a hand on her sword. Izzy had spirit evolved as well, completing the transformation almost as fast as she had. He buzzed his wings and zoomed out of the car without a word. TK was in the middle of spirit evolving, and Mimi and Kari followed suit a moment later. Sora did not stop to wait for them. She flexed her powerful legs and followed Izzy out of the Trailmon.

She spread her wings once she had cleared the door and looked down at the scene before her. Joe had brought them to shore, but the Trailmon still lay in about two feet of water. The beach seemed to stretch for miles and the sand was dark and rocky. Hundreds of tiny streams ran into the ocean. It was quite beautiful, but the battle taking place robbed it of some of its beauty. It seemed that the Shades had gathered in an effort to take them all out – she could see two Shades she did not recognize, watching the battle between Tai and Pavormon with amusement.

One of them was quite tall, and looked somewhat like Matt's spirit, Justimon. Both of his arms were cybernetic, and he wore a red cape and a silver visor over his eyes. Two sets of red, curved wings were mounted on his back, and his feet ended in large, dragon-like claws. Sora realized he must have been Matt's Shade, Luxurmon, the Shade of Instability.

The second newcomer had longish, light brown hair and green, spiked armor. His eyes were brown and piercing, and leaves curved around his shoulders, acting as a weird sort of armor. Vines had wrapped themselves around his wrists. He was quite handsome, but there was an unsettling nature about his features; his angled face and his sharp eyes. Judging by his armor, it must have been Mimi's Shade, Mentirimon, the Shade of Deceit.

Sora flapped her wings and glided toward them, intent on helping Tai. Matt was below her, his long cape trailing in the beach and his red sword drawn. She couldn't see Joe; she arched her neck around and caught sight of him battling with an aquatic, humanoid digimon who must have been his Shade. They were not far from the rest of the Shades, and they watched the fight, catcalling and laughing. Her heart clenched at the state of Joe's spirit; his armor had been torn and slashed in places, and her superb eyesight noticed several gashes in his arms and torso. Joe had saved them, but it clearly hadn't been easy on him.

Sora could see Inanimon perched on Crucimon's shoulder, watching the battle with her dainty little head turned. The first Shade who noticed them approach was Odissmon. Sora's adrenaline spiked at the sight of her – she could not forget the attack she had subjected Sora and Matt to back at the base. Her Shade's entire face scrunched up in a snarl when their eyes met. They had only met a couple days ago, but she already had a sharp hatred for this particular half-digimon. Odissmon spread her wings and soared toward her.

Inanimon stretched and took flight as well, looking like a delicate fairy in the way she held herself. "Ready to fight?" she said, watching the rest of the group approach. She sent a wink to Izzy. It was hard to believe that this flirtatious little digimon was his Shade.

Odissmon drew her twin boomerang-feathers. "This will be our last battle," she said. "Give me your -"

"Spirit, yeah, we got it." Something about Valkyrimon gave Sora a bold attitude, and she had little patience for theatrics. She drew her sword. The air fluttered beside her and Izzy came into view, electricity sparking around his silver claws. TK and Kari hovered a few feet below them, one a holy, angelic digimon and the other a dark angel. This was the first time Sora had seen Kari's spirit, and it was unnerving how differently she poised herself compared to her normal form. She looked detached and arrogant, and dark energy swirled around her wrists. She had no Shade to fight, but she was ready to join the battle. Even Wizardmon was there, his staff held at the ready.

Odissmon flushed angrily and held her weapons out. Sora could sense that Valkyrimon was tense, anticipating a huge, ugly battle to follow. She couldn't blame her; this would be the largest fight they had partaken in, with seven Shades and nine of them. Not to mention the fact that some of the Shades had beast spirits – Pavormon did, but she didn't know about the rest.

Crucimon smirked, a scary expression on such an evil digimon. "This will be quite enjoyable," he said, as though he was about to enjoy a day at a park.

Inanimon laughed and twirled. "Yeah! I can't wait to take their memories. I bet they have some interesting things in there." It was an Izzy-like thing to say, but the intent and delivery was all wrong. A chill trailed up Sora's spine.

"Enough talk. Let's get this over with!" And with that, Odissmon leapt at Sora, flapping her powerful wings and charging at her in a midair attack. Sora caught one of her wrists, her crazed face inches from her own, and blocked the other feather-boomerang with her sword. Izzy grabbed Odissmon's shoulder, but she threw him off – Inanimon tackled him and he disappeared from sight. The maneuver gave Sora a split second opening; she kicked hard, knocking Odissmon back, and slashed. Her Shade avoided it by inches, snarling.

Sora could not see what was happening with the others. She fought Odissmon with such conviction she forgot that she had allies, that there were other people with her fighting the same battle. Both she and Valkyrimon were set on the same goal: remove Odissmon from the picture. She parried and swung her sword, using Odissmon's crazed attacks to her advantage, taking opportunities to strike. She had only just gotten into the rhythm of swinging and blocking when Odissmon tackled her, knocking her out of the air. They spiraled to the ground, a mess of wings and armor. Odissmon scrabbled at Sora, raking her claws across anything she could reach. Sora gasped as her claws scratched her wounded torso, then they hit the ground. Sora landed on her back in the sand and water, her head spinning from the impact. She probably had hit a rock, but she had no time to think about it – Odissmon closed her claws around her throat and pushed her head back.

Terror overcame her when her head sank underwater.

Through her visor, she could barely make out Odissmon's huge smirk as she held her there. Sora kicked and struggled, but Odissmon was on top of her and her strength was amazing. Sora cursed herself for getting into this situation, for landing like this, in an easily compromisable position. If she had been a better soldier, she would not have lost so easily, been defeated so easily...

As Sora choked, continuing to struggle, a shape appeared behind Odissmon's blurry figure. Suddenly her Shade had disappeared and someone pulled her from the water. Sora looked into Tai's brown eyes, dark with anger at what Odissmon had attempted to do. Fire swirled around his spirit's wrists. She had never been so relieved to see him as she coughed and spat water. "Are you okay?" he said. She could not see Odissmon, but she could hear shouts and cries of the battle.

Sora sat up, wiping her mouth. "Yeah. Thanks." She didn't know what would have happened if he had not spotted her. How had he gotten away from Pavormon?

Tai opened his mouth to speak, but he was suddenly grabbed from above. Sora looked up and fear bled through her once more – a huge red dragon had plucked him from the ground in his mouth. Agunimon was caught between his jaws, using all his strength to keep himself from being crushed. The beast must have been Pavormon's beast spirit, Wyvermon. The others had not been exaggerating about its ferocity. "Tai!" she cried. Wyvermon lumbered away, attempting to crush the others beneath its massive feet. Mimi fought with Mentirimon, her movements almost dancing, and she avoided the beast spirit's steps with ease.

Sora spread her wings and took flight just as Odissmon attempted to tackle her again. Her Shade had missed, but Sora heard her shriek of fury and the flap of her wings. Odissmon was not far behind in her pursuit.

Sora only paused for a moment to shoot her crossbow at Matt's Shade Luxurmon as he threw dark swirls of energy at him. Matt was only just agile enough to avoid them. Sora's arrow nailed Luxurmon in the chest, and she saw him fall back and Matt approach him with his sword drawn before she continued after Tai. Odissmon swiped at her heel.

Ignoring her pursuer, she flapped up beside Wyvermon's huge head. Without hesitating, she drove her sword through his rough, scaly skin below his eye, holding it in both hands in a stabbing motion. The Shade of Fear stopped his rampage and roared, rearing his head back and allowing Tai to escape. He fell out of the dragon's mouth against the sand.

Sora could not retrieve her sword from Wyvermon's face and did not get an opportunity to do so. Odissmon had caught up to her, slashing wildly with sharp red feathers. Sora caught her by the wrists once more, using all her strength to keep the mad digimon away from her. For all her bravado and exalted position amongst the other Shades, Odissmon really wasn't that great of a fighter. Sora caught a glimpse of a flash to her left, and suddenly flames surrounded her attacker, forcing her to let go. Odissmon dropped to the ground, fire singing her red armor, rolling and trying to put out the flames. Wyvermon trudged past, swiping at his own face.

Sora grabbed her crossbow, intent on ending the threat of Odissmon with a single arrow, but froze when something in the distance moved erratically along the ground. It did not take long for her fantastic Valkyrimon eyes to make out what it was – several data streams were moving in fast, moving along the ground almost like a searchlight from the sky. She sent a glance behind her. At least four data streams were approaching from the south as well.

"Tai," she said, holding her crossbow steady, "we need to get out of here. We can't win this."

The Agunimon stared at her, his eyebrows pulling together. He closed his mouth, and Sora could see the muscles in his jaw working. "Why?" he demanded, as though he had been told the very same thing many times before.

She pointed. "The data streams. They're getting closer, and there are a lot of them."

"Oh Jesus." Sora had not heard Joe approach, but she turned to him when he spoke. She could see the damage Desomon had done up close now; bits of his armor had been chipped away and there were slashes across his entire body. She opened her mouth to say something apologetic, to say she was sorry for leaving him out there to save them himself, but he spoke again before she could voice her apology. "If those things hit us, who knows where we might end up."

"We can't give up now!" said Tai, gazing around the battle. There was an odd sort of thirst in his eyes. Sora had seen the same look in the eyes of her own Shade.

Odissmon let out an odd cry that made the three of them jump; without warning she took flight, soaring away from them. Before Sora could figure out what was going on, the other Shades joined her, abandoning their fights against the others, leaving them with their weapons drawn or their special attack waiting to fire, bewildered and confused. Wyvermon at last removed Sora's sword from his face and joined his comrades.

Mimi trotted over to them. Gone was the insecurity and the uneasiness; when she was Sakuyamon, her fear seemed to vanish. "What are they doing?" she demanded, clutching her staff.

"It would seem they are regrouping." Wizardmon appeared at Sora's side. He barely stood taller than her elbow.

"They're not," hissed Kari. Sora almost flinched at the expression on her spirit's face. She looked so intense, so focused and single-minded it was almost scary. "They're leading us into a trap."

Izzy landed beside Kari, and TK arrived a moment later. "The data streams," said Izzy, gazing abroad with his black, bug-like eyes. "I've never seen so many of them."

"We've got to retreat, Tai," said TK. He was rocking back and forth slightly on his heels, an odd sight for such an angelic digimon. "If we get caught by those things and separated -"

"No!" Tai's voice rose to a shout. Sora stared as her old friend glared at someone he had always held in high regard. His body was trembling and his eyes wide and angry. The others froze and their protests were silenced. "We were winning – we're not leaving until the job's done and the Shades are finished!"

With that, the fire digimon ran toward the Shades by himself. Sora's heart clenched in terror; he was going to get killed, attacking them alone! "Tai!" she cried, flapping her wings and attempting to take flight. As she took wing, she realized the closest data stream was only about sixty feet away.

Matt grabbed her arm and forced her to the ground again before she had gained much altitude. "Are you crazy?" he cried.

"But – Tai -"

She didn't expect Matt to understand. It had nothing to do with Tai being an old friend – if someone was in trouble, someone on her side, it was her duty to protect that person. Simple as that. But then something black zoomed past them – Kari had gone after her brother, her long wings immobile as she flew and her extended arm held at her side. TK called after her and followed – but the Shades had advanced and were prepared to attack once more.

Pavormon had abandoned his beast spirit and fought Tai hand-to-hand. They had become a mess of fire and smoke, almost unrecognizable in the chaos. Crucimon shot a dark blast toward Kari, and she swerved around it, striking TK instead. Sora felt Matt tense beside her as his brother violently collided with the ground.

"Matt -"

Sora did not need Izzy to tell her what was happening. Matt's entire body shook with rage and he exchanged his red, glowing sword for a blaster which shot electric discs. He had entered a state that Sora had only seen once, when he had first received his spirit – he had lost control once more, shooting at the Shades and anything else that came near him. When Luxurmon challenged him, he lunged recklessly at his Shade, tussling and punching.

Pavormon punched Tai and he landed sprawled feet away from Sora; Desomon and Mentirimon leapt at Joe, Izzy, and Mimi behind her. Odissmon appeared before Sora, leaping from above with her feathers drawn once more.

It happened very quickly. Sora acted instinctively. She raised her crossbow and shot a single arrow.

The arrow caught Odissmon in the chest, in her heart – she was knocked back into the sand, her wings and hair tangled amongst the beach. Unlike Luxurmon, she had very little armor. Odissmon's figure turned completely black, and something that looked like a spirit appeared in the outer ring of digital code.

Sora only had a moment to react. She raised her hand, prepared to absorb her Shade's data.

"_No!_"

An agonized scream rang out, and Sora froze. Pavormon gazed at Odissmon, anguish and terror in his eyes. A data stream was feet away from them, surging along the sand. In its current course, however, it would simply move right past them.

Pavormon's eyes glowed a bright, lava-like orange. Before Sora realized what was happening, data streams converged on them, heading directly for her friends. She saw Tai, TK, and Kari disappear within a single stream, the massive data surge simply picking them up like a vacuum cleaner.

She had no time to react to the data stream that grabbed her from behind.

* * *

I was really sleepy when I was writing the last bit, so I hope it wasn't too terrible lol. Good lord though, I hope I never have to write a seven vs. nine battle again. That was intense and terrible to write lol. Also just to clarify: everyone was hit by the data streams, even Wizardmon, and they are all separated now. Fun :D

Also, updates may come a little slower :( I just started at a university and I moved in today. I'll try to keep a schedule, but no guarantees. We'll see how it goes.

Next time: we see where people have ended up and how they deal with it lol. Sorry I'm super tired xD Hope I get the next chapter out soon. Until then, I hope this was good enough :)


	9. Loss

Somewhat of a wait, I'm sorry about that. Here's a new, kinda long chapter :D

* * *

Sora could no longer feel the ground beneath her feet. The data stream had completely displaced all of her senses – she could not see, and the only sound she heard was a constant _whir_ as though she was stuck in a wind tunnel. She thought perhaps she was falling, and just when she began to wonder when it would ever stop, something solid materialized beneath her feet – and then collapsed under her.

She fell and almost immediately her head slammed into something hard – her Valkyrimon form vanished when her back hit some kind of object. As she slumped and rolled away from it, a searing pain spread from her torso. Sora could not see well, as her head was spinning from impact, but she seemed to have gained nearsightedness and could very clearly see redness forming quickly beneath her shirt. Horror sent chills under her skin and she wrapped an arm around her wound.

Around her, shouts and people speaking. Sora could not make out if they were human or digimon, but she could see shapes moving closer to her, investigating and curious. She swallowed. Her throat was so dry and her breath came out in quick rasps. She had been trained not to panic, but even some situations still rocked her.

"Help," she gasped, as the nearest figure approached her. There was a swooping sensation below and blackness enclosed her.

* * *

A second before, Izzy had been standing on a battlefield fighting with his friends.

The next he knew, he fell upside down and his back crashed into a tree. Frantically trying to spread his wings, he only succeeded in tangling himself in a branch before finally hitting the ground in a heap of leaves and twigs. He groaned and rolled over and his Stingmon form quickly left him.

For a moment he lay there and wondered if he was hurt. The fall had been nasty and he couldn't be sure if he had fallen from a great height, having been so turned around during his descent. He didn't feel any pain, however, so by some miracle he had not been hurt. He sat up. Leaves fell from his hair.

He had arrived in a forest with oddly skinny trees that seemed to stretch for miles. None of the others were in sight; the data stream had done exactly what it was promised to do, he realized with a sigh. What had Tai been thinking, leading them into battle when there were data streams converging on them? He didn't seem to think at all lately, it appeared. Izzy would have to have a talk with Sora or Joe about him, the two people who seemed to listen to him the most – when he met up with them again, that is. He realized with a jolt that they could no longer go home now that the eight of them had been separated.

Izzy stood, continuing to shake leaves and twigs from his hair. What was he going to do? He had his little backpack with him, but it didn't have enough food or supplies to keep him alive for very long. He trudged through the dense undergrowth, his shoes catching on bushes and roots at times. Everything in this forest was colored an odd shade of teal, from the brush to the tree bark, though nothing was really odd in the digital world. He caught the sparkle of a lake ahead, behind the dense trees, and strode toward it.

I hope the others are doing okay, he thought as he approached the water. Joe had been injured in the fight against his Shade, and he hadn't been sure if Sora had fully recovered from that virus. Both had fought valiantly with the Shades, but there was no telling where they had landed and what kind of danger they had gotten themselves into. None of them were great survival experts, either, especially Mimi, and he realized how much Joe would be concerned for her. He sighed. He'd have to pray that the other seven would make it.

He made it to the sparkling lake and knelt at the weedy shore. The lake was wide and stretched amongst the trees, and now that the trees had cleared, Izzy could see a mountain in the distance. It reached into the clouds and was snowcapped, and Izzy tried to remember if he had seen a mountain at any point during their travels to gain a better idea of where he was. He shook his head and turned toward his reflection, finding his face dirty and leaves still clinging to his red hair. He swiped at his hair, shaking the debris free. At least he wasn't home, dealing with things in the real world, where he had messed up so badly… He could still remember his father's anguished, furious face when Izzy met him outside that hospital room…

"Izzy!"

Izzy turned and his heart leapt; Kari had arrived out of the forest, looking disheveled and tired but in otherwise good spirits. She waved at him, and he stood, glad at least one of the others was safe. Kari's optimism would probably offset his tendency to focus on the downside of things. She hurried over to him.

She was panting slightly and her clothes were dirty. "Thank goodness I found you," she said, blocking the sunlight with her hand. Then, "There's stuff in your hair."

Izzy suppressed a sigh and brushed more out of his hair. "I know," he said. "You haven't seen any of the others, then?"

"No…no one. TK, Tai and I were hit by the same data stream, but I don't see them anywhere. If you're here, though, maybe the others are close." She ended her rant with a huge smile, as though the idea would result in the positive outcome without a doubt. Given what he had been told about data streams, the statistics didn't support her idea.

He wasn't about to tell her that, though, and they needed to move anyway to find the others. "Maybe they are," he said. He swallowed, hoping she didn't notice his discomfort. "Where do you want to start?"

She squinted past his head, scrunching her mouth up in thought. "Hmm, maybe opposite that mountain, because I don't recall seeing it. And uh, I thought I saw buildings that way." She turned and pointed over the tall line of trees. Izzy could just make out the gray, rectangular outline of a city.

Cities usually meant digimon; and digimon could mean trouble for them. If the Shades wanted data, a highly populated area would probably be the best place to start. "I'm not sure," he said hesitantly. She tilted her head. "There could be digimon there. And Shades."

"Maybe," she said. "Look, if we see trouble, we'll get out of there. Both of us can fly. We'll just spirit evolve and get ourselves out of danger."  
Izzy bit back the retort that he didn't want her spirit evolving at all – the fact that she could become Ladydevimon disturbed him beyond explanation. She also sounded a bit like her brother, which was also quite disturbing. But Izzy had seen her fight during their last battle, and he had to admit she was almost as fast as he was, and Stingmon could fly the fastest out of the eight of them. He ended up nodding. "All right," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets and striding past her, toward the city.

Kari happily skipped beside him as they walked along the edge of the bank, the city steadily drawing near. "Awesome! I hope we find somebody. And not a Shade. That would suck."

Izzy found himself grinning; her optimism and word choice always made him smile. "It would," he said gently.

"Then I'd have to spirit evolve." Her face scrunched up again, but this time darkness cast itself on her expression. Izzy realized she was as happy about what her spirit turned out to be as he was. He wondered again what her spirit's mind had been like, but decided against asking her. "I wish it was more normal," she said, "like yours or Sora's. Both of you guys seem to have a great handle on being a digimon. Mine is just so weird…" Her lids closed a moment. "I wonder why mine was corrupted, and no one else's."

Izzy thought for a moment what her crest and digimon partner represented, and came up with a theory based on some thoughts he'd had earlier. "Well, maybe your spirit was supposed to be Light, given what your crest is. Gatomon proved to be exceptionally strong when she evolved. Maybe the Shades were afraid of what your spirit would have been."

Kari's eyes widened, and she looked away, biting her lip. Izzy hoped he hadn't upset her by mentioning her lost partner. Once again he wished he hadn't said anything, but when Kari spoke, she didn't seem angry. "That could be," she said. A small grin lit up her face. "I mean, I don't mean to brag, but my crest and partner were pretty strong. Heh, we one-shotted Myotismon."  
"You did," he said, unable to suppress his smile.

For a moment she grinned as she walked, recalling that moment with obvious delight. "Anyway," she said, turning toward him and attempting to be serious once more, "why do you think all those data streams suddenly jumped on us like that? That was pretty crazy."

He paused before replying, thinking about his answer. "I think that since the Shades are so unnatural to this world, being half-digimon, they are quite unstable. Gathering in one place and using that many of their special abilities could have upset the digital world's foundation."

Izzy hoped he made some sense, but Kari was nodding as though his explanation had been perfectly clear. "Oh, yeah, I think Wizardmon mentioned something like that. God, I hope he's okay. And the others." Her eyebrows furrowed and she held her hands together. "I hope they didn't meet anyone who wanted to attack them."

More often than not, in this world, he thought, but he only nodded. He didn't want to upset her with his negativity.

They were not far from the city now, and as they rounded the last cluster of trees, they got a good look at it for the first time. It was quite odd – the buildings, all block-shaped, were all different colors, and on some of them bright screens flashed pictures of the real world. Some of the data making up the buildings was clearly unstable, Izzy observed, because some parts were blinking and becoming fuzzy every once in a while. Speakers set up around the empty streets belted out words in languages Izzy was only vaguely familiar with.

There was no gate, nor a sign depicting where the forest ended and the city began – pavement had simply been placed over the grass. It almost looked as though someone had cut part of a city out and placed it randomly beside the forest. As Izzy and Kari stepped onto the pavement, shouts and cries could be heard, though the streets were empty, from what they could see. It was impossible to tell if the noise came from the speakers.

"This is really weird," said Kari, gazing along the screens mounted high above them. She paused to watch a newborn zebra foal hurry to catch up with its mother.

Izzy grunted, staring at everything, taking in as much information as he could. "It _is_ the digital world," he pointed out. After seeing that weird mishmash of landmarks during their last adventure in this world, seeing a city like this wasn't that strange. It always did interest him when information from the real world was displayed in some nature here, however. People in the real world were probably watching what was playing on the screens, and somehow the digital world had taken that information and displayed it. His thoughts wandered, wondering how that could have taken place.

Then – "Izzy, look!"

Kari pointed at something directly ahead of them. A small digimon had emerged from the street a quarter of a mile ahead of them, running in panic. Izzy recognized a tiny Chuumon, but he was not prepared for whom his pursuers turned out to be. Crucimon floated into view, chasing the tiny digimon and firing dark blasts. He missed, but Inanimon shot a small electric jolt and the Chuumon was destroyed, dissolving into tiny particles which Inanimon absorbed, with a wave of permission from her partner. Several other digimon, just as tiny, attempted to scatter, but Inanimon caught up with them, destroying and absorbing their data. Izzy could hear her chilling laughter from where they were standing.

Kari had frozen, but Izzy knew they had to move before the Shades noticed them. Inanimon began to fly backwards toward them, firing off electric blasts at the fleeing digimon. If she turned around, they would surely be spotted – they couldn't go back the way they came now. He grabbed her arm and the two of them bolted into the nearest building, throwing the door open with his elbow. Inside, it was very dark, as there were no windows, and the furniture was composed of desks and computers, as though this had once been a classroom or an office. Kari quickly closed the door behind them, but Izzy feared that the Shades had seen the two of them enter.

Izzy led her deeper into the building, through winding dark halls and more offices. He had no idea where he was going, but he was determined to put as much space between them and the Shades as possible.

"How did they get here so fast?" Kari wondered, her voice echoing loudly throughout the dim halls.

He hesitated, forcing himself to focus. But suddenly it had become difficult, and he found he had to put effort into concentrating on a topic. "Um…" he said, glancing back at her, having never given it much thought. Kari tilted her head, knowing it was an unusual thing for him to say. "Maybe we are not far from where we were transported," he said at last, facing forward and continuing on. "That beach could be close by."

"Those poor digimon," she said. Izzy could not see her expression, but knew her well enough to know what she would say next. "We should go back and help them."

"We can't win against two Shades," he said.

"I suppose," she murmured. "Where are we going, Izzy?"

Izzy came to a halt, realizing the question was probably important. Where _was_ he going? He glanced behind him, taking in the dark halls. He couldn't see where they had come, as it was too dark, and his sense of direction seemed completely turned around. What was wrong with him?

A jolt shuddered through his body when he remembered what he had said about Tai's Shade – when Pavormon absorbs data, Tai seems to lose a bit of himself…maybe that's what happens to us when our Shade gets stronger. He found himself shaking. Was that what was happening to him? Was Inanimon taking away his intellect by collecting data? What good would he be to the group now?

"Are you all right?" Kari, ever perceptive in the feelings of others, walked around him to get a better look at his face.

Izzy straightened himself. "Uh, yeah," he said. He pointed down the hallway to their left. "Shall we try that way?"

"No, you're not." She moved toward him, narrowing her eyes. "There's something wrong, isn't there? Something you just figured out?"

Izzy stared at her. How could she have known that? She didn't know him well at all. Was it just her intuition regarding how her friends were feeling? He shook his head. "It's not…important," he said, hoping that would be enough to convince her to drop the subject. "We need to focus on getting out of here, anyway."

Kari must have realized as well that now was not the time. "Okay," she said, though she bit her lip anxiously, from the dark corridors or his lie, he couldn't tell.

The two of them walked in silence. Izzy listened intently for anyone following them, but he could hear no one but Kari beside him – until they rounded a corner.

Kari leapt up in fright and Izzy flinched instinctively when two figures rounded the corner at the same moment they did. Then Kari let out a gasp of delight and hugged the first figure, who turned out to be Tai, then the second, TK, all the while exclaiming how happy she was that they were all right. Tai gave Izzy a curt nod, but Izzy didn't think much of it – he knew it would be a while before their relationship was repaired. He was more interested in the gear-like digimon following them in a huddle. He recognized them as Hagurumon.

Kari bounced happily on her heels, overjoyed at having found her favorite people. "I can't believe you guys are here too," she said.

"Maybe everybody else is nearby as well," said TK. His features were more drawn than usual, and there was a tightness to his expression. Izzy knew that he worried for the missing chosen more than anyone.

"Maybe." Tai had his gaze set on Izzy, his jaw clenched, and Izzy felt himself begin to grow uncomfortable. He had almost forgotten about Tai's threat regarding his sister and realized that he probably shouldn't have traveled with her, but what was he supposed to do – leave her in the forest? Izzy mentally rolled his eyes. Tai could be unbelievably immature. With either decision, Izzy knew, he would have been in trouble with him.

Izzy swallowed and nodded toward the Hagurumon. "What are they doing here?"

The gear-like digimon drew closer together. "They were trying to escape the Shades," said TK.

Kari gasped. "Oh, you've seen them too? And you uh, didn't try to fight them?" Izzy had to work to contain a grin. Even she had noticed Tai's recklessness and inability to make wise decisions.

Tai jerked his head toward TK. "He said we probably shouldn't." There was a growl to his voice, and Izzy knew he wasn't happy about any kind of retreat.

"We knew the Shades were coming, and we didn't even try to run." One of the Hagurumon spoke up, sounding tinny and fearful. Its red, gear-shaped eyes were downcast, and the extra gears on the ridge of its body rotated slowly. "And because of that, everyone else in the city is going to be absorbed…" The second Hagurumon turned away.

Kari's eyebrows drew together, and she folded her arms. "We should help them," she said.

Tai looked up hopefully, but TK let out a small, exasperated noise and shook his head. Izzy was with him – if they tried to help every digimon who needed it, they ran the risk of being killed. It may have been cold, but they didn't have the resources to fight the Shades – even if they did outnumber them.

"Kari, I don't think we should," said TK. Izzy glanced at her, and was surprised at the hardness in her gaze as she glared back at him. "It would be reckless to attack the Shades, and we don't know if either of them have beast spirits."

"So we're just going to let those digimon get killed?" she retorted.

"We used to have defenses in the city that would ward off any intruders," said the second, quieter Hagurumon. "But they haven't worked in ages. They need some kind of repair."

Tai turned his attention toward the Hagurumon. He was grinning slightly, and Izzy suspected that he felt smug about having a backup to his argument in favor of attacking the Shades. "How good are these defenses?" he asked.

"Well, they used to keep even the corrupted digimon at bay. But like I said, they're broken."

Tai gave Izzy a quick nod. "That sounds like a job for you," he said.

Izzy's insides twisted. He didn't like being coerced into doing something he was against in the first place, and he especially didn't want to do this when he suspected Inanimon may have taken some of his intellect from him. But if these defenses worked, maybe they could take out two of the Shades right there and then, and he especially wanted to try and destroy his own Shade. "All right," he said, and they followed the two Hagurumon down the dark halls.

* * *

Tai had awoken after being transported to the feeling of being shaken. When he opened his eyes, TK knelt beside him, his blue eyes wide and his new hat askew. "Wake up, Tai, we've lost the others," he said.

He sat up quickly, and his head spun. Tai immediately knew that he was no longer Agunimon – his digimon form didn't succumb to such mundane human problems. He registered cement beneath him and buildings every which way he looked. Voices blared out from speakers, but he didn't try to understand them. He was disoriented and confused, and even a bit angry – clearly their attack had not gone as planned. "What happened?" he growled. As far as he knew, the Shades were still very much alive.

"Data streams hit us," said TK. He was eighteen now, but with the worry in his eyes, he looked so much younger. Tai could still see the little blond boy he had once worked so hard to protect. "I didn't find any of the others, but I found you lying here…"

Tai nodded, rising to his feet gingerly. TK offered him a hand, but Tai waved him away. "And Kari?" he said.

"I can't find her. I don't know where she ended up."

Tai's heart clenched. She could be anywhere in the digital world, he realized, remembering what Wizardmon had told them. Anywhere. And Sora was out there somewhere too, alone and still injured… If only he had taken out the Shades when he'd had the chance, the data streams would not have converged on them. If only he had been stronger…

_Soon_, promised a voice. Tai looked up, glancing at TK, but the younger man was gazing around the city, obtaining his bearings. His hopes rose. Ancientgreymon had promised him power, and since Tai owned his spirit, he'd have to come through for him.

_When?_ Tai thought, but there was a chuckle, and no response.

Tai sighed, and returned his attention to the situation at hand. "We'll find her. She's your girlfriend, after all. You must be really worried." He had always been close to TK; when Matt was not around, sometimes Tai would act as a substitute older brother. TK was probably the only boy he approved of his sister dating.

TK sent him a glance. His features had frozen. "We-we're not dating anymore," he stammered. Tai stared. Ice seeped its way into his veins and a dull ache pounded at the back of his head. "We, um, broke up a month ago. She, uh, didn't tell you?"

"No," he breathed. His heart seemed to skip several beats as he registered this information. What had happened between them? When had they stopped being a couple and returned to being just friends? Even worse, what had happened between Tai and his sister to make her withhold this news from him? He would have to have a talk with her as soon as he met up with Kari again. Was this why Izzy was coming on to her – did he know, when Tai had not, for this entire month?

Rage threatened to spill over into his actions, but he was with TK now – he was innocent, for the most part. Kari was nowhere near him, and neither was Izzy. There was nothing he could do about it now. TK continued to send him glances, worried about the consequences of this revelation, but he ignored him. Matt's brother was not his main concern.

As he walked a while later with TK, Kari, and Izzy, that memory of that conversation was pounding at the back of his mind, demanding to be addressed. He'd been proud of himself for not exploding when he'd found Izzy and Kari together, _again_, but he couldn't ignore the issue any longer. Unfortunately, when he opened his mouth to demand answers, one of the Hagurumon announced that they had arrived.

They had been led to a small room with some kind of elaborate machine residing inside. Tai had no idea how the mass of computers, wires, and tubes functioned, but Izzy moved closer, his eyes narrowed in thought. As much as he would like to see Izzy fail, even he had to admit that these defenses would give them an edge against the Shades. They let Izzy set to work on figuring the thing out, as he examined the computers and the mechanisms, leaving the three of them to wait by the doorway. Kari chatted with the Hagurumon, trying to comfort them, while TK and Tai waited impatiently. Tai sent a glance at Kari, ignoring the worried way TK continually tapped his foot. His arms were crossed so tightly they were almost locked to his chest, and his teeth hurt from clenching his jaw. He had to know what had happened.

Without giving the matter anymore thought, he took a step toward Kari. TK seemed to realize what was about to happen and removed himself from the wall he leaned against, opening his mouth to try and stop the inevitable. Tai cut across him. "Kari," he said, and his sister looked up. Tai saw Izzy glance at them out of the corner of his eye. "Is there something you want to tell me, that happened recently?"

Kari narrowed her eyes and stood up from her kneeling position beside the Hagurumon. "What, besides the obvious?" she said. Tai scowled. He should have known she was going to be smart. "Uh, we got sent back to the digital world. That was pretty big. And it happened recently. And it's something."

"I heard that you and TK broke up," he said. He thought perhaps he should feel embarrassed, and suddenly wished that they were alone. But he had assumed that his little sister, who had so admired him over the years, would be the first to tell him when something like this happened. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tai…" TK began, but he ignored him.

"Why is it your business?" she retorted. "Tai. I'm eighteen. The protective big brother act is getting a little old."

"But you could have told me," he insisted.

Kari's brown eyes softened. "Is it just because I didn't mention it to you?" she said.

Tai's insides squirmed. He could sense that this was quickly becoming too mushy of a conversation for him. "Uh, no. TK is the only guy I'd approve of you dating."

His sister made a face that reminded him of a disgusted teenage daughter. Tai's expression remained impassive, determined to win this.

He started when Izzy spirit evolved without warning; suddenly as Stingmon, he took a step toward a motor looking thing. Tai watched him jolt it with a small bit of electricity from his finger – the thing whirred to life and hummed, and the screens lit up.

Kari looked at him, happy for the distraction. "Wow, you did it!" she said. Tai scowled at her approval.

One of the little Hagurumon bounced forward, a grin on its otherwise dull expression. "The defenses finally work! We're saved!"

"Nice one, Izzy," said TK. He had relaxed somewhat, adjusting his hat and smiling.

Izzy shrugged modestly. Without warning a metal cover slammed down behind them, blocking the archway they had come through with a massive _clang_, making them all jump. A second door opened beside the generator, revealing another hallway. Everyone stared.

Kari had clasped her hands together. "Is, uh, that supposed to happen?" she asked.

"Perhaps the defenses are showing us a safe way to escape," said the Hagurumon in its squeaky voice.

Tai frowned; he didn't want to escape, he wanted to fight, especially now that they had the city's defenses on their side. He uncrossed his arms and strode toward it. "Let's just go," he said. He knew that the others were upset with him, but he cared very little at the moment. The others followed him, Izzy remaining in his digimon form.

The hallways were marked with weird patterns, sometimes with languages, other times with pictures that could not be viewed until they looked at it from a certain angle. It would have been strange, but nothing about the digital world was weird anymore. As they walked through the hallway, it gradually became brighter, and wider. The ceiling rose above them the more they continued, and Tai could see the brilliant light of the outside far ahead of them out of a wide opening.

Kari fumed behind him, keeping her distance from him and her body language angry and closed off. Tai knew she was angry, but she wasn't the type to continue the argument when they had other things to deal with.

Or so he thought. "I can't believe you brought that up, Tai. Do you have any idea how immature you are sometimes? It's like you don't think before you do anything. Why did you even tell him that?" she added, directed at TK.

He shook his head, looking as though he'd rather be anywhere else. Tai seethed, walking heavily through the weird hallways with his hands in his pockets. What was the big deal? He just wanted some answers. He opened his mouth to defend himself, but one of the Haugurmon spoke up.

"The defenses should be helping us by now." Its voice shook somewhat.

TK turned to him as he walked. "Maybe they don't help until we run into trouble?" he suggested.

The little digimon shook its head. There was no preparing for what happened next.

The ceiling before them collapsed in a cloud of dust and rubble, quaking the ground beneath them and causing the four of them to leap back in fright. Tai fell, unbalanced and stunned, losing track of where the others were almost instantly. As the dust cleared, he could see the shape of a humanoid digimon beyond the wreckage. He scrambled backward, just in time to avoid a thin jolt of electricity that struck the floor, leaving a tiny singe mark. A female voice laughed, a sound that would have been produced by a group of girls out shopping. Inanimon stepped into view, her large black eyes fixed on them and her thick red hair swaying.

Her long, dragonfly-like wings buzzed behind her and she leapt a few feet forward, landing daintily on the steel ground. "Hi!" she said brightly. "We were wondering when you all would show up!" She grinned at Izzy. "And thanks for turning on the computers. Those defenses work a lot better when I've configured them to work in my favor."

Horror churned in Tai's gut as he realized what she meant. He glared at Izzy, meeting his digimon's expressionless gaze with as much contempt as he could muster. The redhead may have just damned them all. There was a flash of dark energy from behind them, and a short cry.

Both of the Hagurumon exploded into tiny data particles as Crucimon blasted them with his attack, and as he drew near he absorbed their data. "Greetings, chosen," he drawled, his black and gold armor gleaming.

Kari stared at him, shaking with fury, her digivice held close. Tai sent her a glance; they hadn't even known those Hagurumon for an hour, was she really going to get this worked up over it? The answer came a moment later when Kari, now Ladydevimon, leapt at Crucimon, her longer arm reaching for his throat.

Tai yelled Kari's name. What was wrong with her? And she accused _him_ of not thinking before acting. Tai brought out his digivice and spirit evolved once again. The raw power of Agunimon greeted him as he emerged from the digital code. Fire ran in his veins and unbelievable strength coursed through him. He would never get tired of the feeling of being a digimon.

As Tai ran to help her, the floor beneath him shook, and a giant wall cut across the walkway. It shut them away from Izzy and TK, locking them in with Crucimon. Sleek-looking guns, a red dot in the barrels, appeared on the wall's surface and took aim. Tai narrowed his eyes.

Lasers fired from the guns, and Tai ducked to the side as his armor on his shoulder was pierced. It hissed and sizzled, but luckily had not broken completely through. Kari fought Crucimon relentlessly behind him, and he could hear her efforts as he focused on the laser guns. Fire blazed from the vents on his wrists, and he grabbed the flames and threw them. They felt like wispy snowballs in his hands. The first one struck the laser gun in the center of the wall, and the rest didn't need to meet their mark. Explosions rocked the barricade, sending smoke and bits of metal flying in all directions, but the wall didn't collapse. It was apparently too thick to be brought down by a few explosions.

Tai turned to Kari and Crucimon, fire swirling around his wrists. He had to admit that his sister fought well; Crucimon spent more time blocking her attacks than fighting, and Kari showed no signs of fatigue.

Suddenly Crucimon threw her from him – as Kari slammed into the wall, Tai charged, the fire moving to the palms of his hands. Crucimon sent him a harsh look, full of hatred in those icy blue eyes, and his eyes turned pitch black.

A memory that Tai could not control overcame him, and he was suddenly overwhelmed once more in the terror of almost losing Kari because of his carelessness. He could hear his mother's angry shrieks in the hospital, her raised hand, and the stinging on his cheek. Awareness of the situation melted as he was forced to remember that particular memory. He wished he could close his eyes.

* * *

Electricity sparked from Izzy's silver claws, and he tried to line up the shot as TK and Inanimon fought relentlessly. Both tussled and moved too quickly, electricity and holy light flashing, and Izzy couldn't fire without potentially striking TK as well. He lowered his arm. He'd have to help TK subdue her, then try to shoot.

The wall separating them from Tai and Kari opened suddenly and Crucimon burst through it – Izzy only had a split second to see Kari, as Ladydevimon, dazed and recovering, leaning against the wall, and Tai, clearly trapped in a memory Crucimon had inflicted upon him. Crucimon shot a jolt of darkness toward Izzy, his expression oddly calm and somewhat smug.

As Inanimon and TK continued to fight, Izzy's wings buzzed into action and he sailed over the blast by inches, zooming straight up to Crucimon and striking with his silver claws. They raked across Crucimon's face, leaving three bloody streaks, and Izzy kicked, knocking Crucimon back. The dark angel grimaced, his blue eyes cold, and fired again.

The jolt of darkness clipped Izzy's shoulder, sending a spasm of pain through his body; he recoiled, losing altitude, and he had no time to react before Crucimon's eyes glowed black, and he began to charge a second dark strike. Izzy fell to the ground, but he was no longer aware of where he was. A man's voice yelled at him, his despair turned into anger and directed at Izzy. The faint outline of a hospital became present in the front of his mind.

"_You weren't here! I called you – she wanted to say good-bye! Where were you?!_"

A shockwave of power from an attack brought Izzy back into reality; he raised his head, and his blood ran cold. Crucimon had fired again, but his dark attack had not struck Izzy – instead Kari was in front of him, absorbing the full force of the attack, her digimon form crumpled in pain. TK let out a cry of shock and made a move toward her, but Inanimon struck him with a flash of electricity, knocking him to the ground. Izzy heard Tai's roar of anger. Kari's Ladydevimon form grew black and her spirit became exposed.

Izzy tried to raise himself, but the terrible memory still lingered, and he could hear the man continue to shout at him. Crucimon floated toward Kari's unresponsive form, wearing a twisted smile, and snatched the spirit away before Tai could stop him. Ladydevimon shrank to reveal Kari, and she sank to the floor. "Looks like the Spirit of Darkness is mine now," the Shade said. He smirked at the crescent moon symbol that hovered in his palm; as soon as he closed his hand, it disappeared. Inanimon laughed at the sight.

Tai charged at Crucimon, enraged and out of control, and his punched narrowly missed the Shade of Despair as Crucimon flew upward to avoid it. TK zoomed around Inanimon and scooped up Kari in his arms. "Tai, we need to get out of here," he called. His normally optimistic and cheerful voice was tight with fear. Izzy could not blame him – Kari had just been struck down and the three of them had been powerless to stop it. He looked at her limp form, her eyes closed and her head resting against TK's armor, and felt chills work their way down his spine. How could they have let this happen?  
As Izzy climbed to his feet, Tai grit his teeth and shot TK a dark look. "Get Kari out of here, just go! I'll take care of them." He turned to the two Shades, fire and smoke swirling around his form.

"Yes, run," Inanimon mocked. Her dark eyes flashed yellow. "You can't take us both, Courage."

"The hell I can't," Tai snapped.

Izzy inwardly grimaced. As TK hesitated, he moved to Tai's side. "We have to run, Tai – they will take our spirits too and destroy us. We'll find the others and try again, all right?"

Stingmon's lightning quick reflexes saw the fiery arm shoot toward his head before he did. Izzy ducked around it. "Don't attack me, you idiot, I'm trying to get you out of here," he said, fighting to keep his voice calm. The Agunimon's face was contorted with rage. Izzy didn't have time for this. He knew that Tai was furious about what had happened to Kari, but the Shades would attack them and if Inanimon got Izzy's spirit, she would be unstoppable.

Without pausing to think, Izzy grabbed Tai under the arms and powered his wings, ignoring Tai's shocked yell. He and TK zoomed through the hallways, leaving the Shades behind. They emerged into the city from a square hole cut into the street, but they didn't stop within the city. They flew hard, and Izzy's wings ached by the time they made it out of the strange city. It didn't help that Tai was raging and swearing at him as he flew, but Izzy ignored him. Stingmon was beyond reasoning with his comrade, and he wasn't going to try, especially with someone who had taken a swing at him.

Izzy could not see Kari in TK's arms, but he could hear TK speaking softly to her. Kari's legs moved as she responded. Izzy felt heavy with relief; at least she was okay, but her spirit…her spirit of Darkness remained in Crucimon's clutches. How would they ever get it back?  
They finally landed on the outskirts of a small village. Izzy could see digimon running around, stopping by different tents as though it was a fair, but the village was not important at the moment. As soon as he landed, his Stingmon form quickly left him, and Tai regressed into his human form as well. TK placed Kari gently on the ground; she stood, but seemed a little shaken. In a swirl of blue digital code, Seraphimon reverted back to TK.

Exhaustion from their long flight and the battle weighed heavily on Izzy, but Tai took no notice as he approached him, his posture hunched and his hands clenched into fists. Without warning, Tai grabbed Izzy roughly by the collar. "The hell was that?" he yelled in his face. His old friend was quickly growing red beneath his tan. "Kari loses her spirit and you fucking carry me out of there?"

"Tai!" Kari cried, moving toward them.

"Stay out of this! Kari's spirit is gone – she took a hit for you, and you did nothing to stop it!" Tai's expression was reminiscent of an angry animal, baring his teeth and his eyes hard as steel.

Izzy swallowed, his hand grasping Tai's wrist, attempting to pry his fingers from his shirt. He no longer had Stingmon's assertion to defend himself. It wasn't entirely his fault what had happened to Kari's spirit – they all should have been looking after one another better, but the Shades had been too powerful. Even four against two hadn't been able to stop them, and no beast spirits were involved.

Izzy hesitated, knowing he had to say something or risk getting hit. He couldn't point out that, in the midst of Tai's anger, he had tried to punch him – that remark would probably enrage him further. "It was not my fault what happened, Tai. We'll get Kari's spirit back."

"Let him go," TK said. His blond hair was tousled and he had his hands in his pockets. His concern for Kari was obvious, and he probably didn't like to see two of his friends fighting either. "There's no point giving blame – we're going to have to just keep going, and try to find everybody else, and beast spirits."

Tai released Izzy, his knuckles white and the last of his anger ebbing away. He probably would not forgive him, but at least he was out of danger for now. As Izzy straightened out his shirt, he sent a glance at Kari.

The younger girl gazed at her black digivice. The screen was blank and buzzing with gray and white now that her spirit was gone. Izzy swallowed, realizing the depth of the loss of her spirit – what would they do to protect her now that she could no longer become a digimon? How would she protect herself if she ever became separated from them? He watched her sigh. "Come on, guys," she said, her voice hollow. "We need to find the others."

* * *

Oh dear. I thought I should let you guys know: I'm a fan of Koukari (Izzy/Kari) and eventually this story will have a bit of that in it. If you're not a fan I'm sorry D:

What will happen now that Kari lost her spirit to Crucimon?! I'm looking over my notes for the next chapter, and it's gonna be pretty intense. I'm excited lol. When do beast spirits start showing up and who gets one first? They may be showing up soon ;)

Next time: We find out what happened to some of the others, and we see their points of view lol. Sorry I don't want to give too much away D: Oh and Sora, we find out what's up with her lol. Hope you enjoyed!


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